A possible four-month grouper closure in federal Atlantic Ocean waters returns in the latest version of snapper-grouper rules proposed by the National Marine Fisheries Service.
“We got a reprieve in December when the NMFS abandoned the closure as an interim rule,” said Islamorada charter captain Bill Kelly, “but the [proposed permanent rule] is exactly the same.”
The [...]
The federal government has proposed a new rule to protect critical habitat for the Florida Keys’ most unique species and rare fish — the smalltooth sawfish.
Listed as endangered in 2003, the sawfish population has declined by 95 percent from its historical numbers, hovering around 2,000 today, said Shelly Norton, who worked on the recovery plan [...]
Appeal to U.S. commerce chief falls on deaf ears…
A final decision on a pending ban on grouper fishing is not expected before early December — but a Key West charter captain said the chances of relief seem bleak.
Andy Griffiths, who spoke directly with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez on a conference call earlier this [...]
Regular lobster season begins August 6th at 12:01 a.m. and ends March 31 at midnight. The two-day Sport Lobster Season is always the last consecutive Wednesday and Thursday in July, beginning at 12:01 A.M. on Wednesday and ending at 12:00 midnight on Thursday. The bag limit is 6 per person per day.
Anyone planning to hunt [...]
It is that time of the year, the spiny lobsters are out and running. The official opening of the two day mini season was last Wednesday and for the first time in many years the lobsters outnumbered the hunters. For no known reason it seemed our friends from the north (United States) where [...]
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