Saving Seafood

FLORIDA: Scallop season scheduled for next week

August 10, 2018 — There is certain hesitancy about pronouncing the start of scallop harvest season in St. Joseph Bay.

After all, nothing about the past two seasons as been on schedule.

Nevertheless, the 2018 scallop harvest season in St. Joseph Bay is scheduled to open Aug. 17, next Friday, with the potential for the first full season in three years.

If indeed a full season is realized, it will come to a close Sept. 30.

Gulf County’s season in the last to open in Florida as the state moved to region-specific seasons this year.

Researchers have yet to complete and post the numbers from the annual survey of the scallop population in St. Joseph Bay.

The numbers, a researcher with Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission should be posted on the FWC website before the end of the week.

But, there was a hint of positive vibes for the season this past weekend during a “scallop rodeo.”

Last Saturday, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission invited those interested to participate in a collection of scallops as a continuation of restoration efforts that began three years ago.

Read the full story at The Port St. Joe Star

FLORIDA: Gov. Scott Announces First Pasco County Scallop Season in More Than 20 Years

July 17, 2018 — Today, Governor Scott announced that for the first time since 1994, state waters off Pasco County will be open to bay scallop harvest during a 10-day season from July 20-29. The region includes all state waters south of the Hernando–Pasco county line and north of the Anclote Key Lighthouse in northern Pinellas County, and includes all waters of the Anclote River.

Governor Scott said, “I’m proud to announce that for the first time in more than 20 years, families in Pasco County will be able to enjoy a scallop season. Scalloping is one of the best ways to experience the Sunshine State’s incredible natural areas and I encourage residents and visitors to take advantage of this exciting opportunity.”

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) Chairman Bo Rivard said, “Scalloping with your friends and family is classic Florida fun in the sun. The season brings people and an economic boost to these coastal areas, all the while encouraging conservation and connecting residents and visitors to the wonders of Florida’s outdoors.”

Read the full story at the Florida Trend

Biologists and volunteers work to increase scallop population

July 17, 2018 — A ten year restoration program that aims to protect scallops and increase their population has kicked off in Panama City.

Biologists with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Research Institute gathered Sunday to start building cages for the project, that will soon be filled with scallops.

According to Emily Hardin with the FWC, groups of volunteers will be collecting the scallops and putting them in the cages to keep them safe from predators and to give them a better chance of reproducing.

“We don’t want the scallops to be eaten by any predators so we’re putting them inside the cage to help with that, but also, scallops will broadcast spawn. They’re going to release all of their egg and sperm into the water column and so if they’re close together, there’s a higher chance that everything’s going to come together just like it should and we’ll have a lot of baby scallops growing up in the bay,” Hardin said.

Hardin says the scallop populations have been declining for years because of over-harvesting, weather conditions and red tide.

Read the full story at WJHG

FLORIDA: FWC Builds Cages to Save Scallop Population

July 16, 2018 — Scallop populations are diminishing in St. Andrews and St. Joseph’s Bay. Over the past few years scientists have noticed a decline in reproduction. To solve the issue of a scallop shortage, scientists have gotten creative.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and volunteers, spent the day making around 100 scallop cages. Emily Hardin, the FWC Volunteer Coordinator says she’s proud of her community. “It’s just really inspiring to see the community coming together to help with this scallop restoration project.”

A total of 6 organizations are involved with this project. The FWC, UF/IFAS Extension Bay County, UF/IFAS Extension Gulf County, Bay County Board of Commissioners, St. Andrews Bay Watch Resource Management Association, and Florida Sea Grant.

The cages are part of a 10 year scallop restoration program across the entire panhandle. It is funded through a Natural Resources Damage Assessment (NRDA) Grant.

The decrease in scallop population could be due to over harvesting, red tide events, weather changes. A mix of events.

Lix Pudlak and FWC Biologist and outreach coordinator explained how the cages work. “The cage kind of acts as a barrier from predators so it’ll help protect them from being eaten and stuff like that. And since they’re in such close proximity to each other it should increase, I guess, success of reproduction.”

Read the full story at MyPanhandle.com

FLORIDA: Shark fishing workshops, red snapper announcement coming soon

July 9, 2018 — In April, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission bridged a controversial topic among Florida’s millions of beachgoers and anglers — shore-based shark fishing. Emotional public comment presented by more than 25 speakers convinced the 7-member governor-appointed volunteer commission to request FWC staff to develop more comprehensive regulations to address shore-based shark fishing from the Sunshine State’s more than 2,000 miles of beaches.

That day in April, no one logged any comment in support of shore-based shark fishing. And I warned you all, if you don’t show up, your voice will not be heard.

Now, the FWC has announced a series of public workshops around the state beginning next week to further address the practice as a step in the process towards developing regulations aimed at conserving sharks better and protecting beachgoers, too.

The problem, according to recommendations provided to the FWC by David Shiffman (@WhySharksMatter on Twitter), noted shark researcher at Simon Fraser University and marine conservation biologist and science writer, is several species commonly caught from the beach do not survive the fight very well, and if they do, they may not survive the photo session or release.

“Two of the top ways that angling stress kills fish are long fight times which exhaust the fish and air exposure,” Shiffman wrote in recommendations he provided to FWC — “Promoting Conservation-Friendly Shark Handling Practices in the Fishing Capital of the World: A Science-Based Proposal to Revise Florida’s Land-Based Shark Fishing Regulations.”

Read the full story at Treasure Coast News

Coast Guard busts Keys fishing vessel with shark fins

June 20, 2018 — A Coast Guard crew from Station Islamorada stopped a commercial fishing vessel in the Upper Keys Tuesday morning that was loaded with dismembered sharks and 11 fins.

Federal law has prohibited the practice of shark finning — where the fin is cut off the shark and the rest of the body discarded — since 2000.

The 40-foot vessel, the Miss Shell, was stopped near South Sound Creek, which is near John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park in Key Largo, said Petty Officer 3rd Class Brandon Murray. The initial stop was for improper display of navigational lights, according to a Coast Guard press release.

Crew from a Coast Guard patrol boat, which included an officer with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, boarded the Miss Shell and found the fins and shark carcasses.

The National Marine Fisheries Service, part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, has taken over the investigation into the case. There is no immediate information about arrests.

Read the full story at the Florida Keys News

 

Florida anglers can improve harvest data from their phones

June 19, 2018 — Florida anglers can improve harvest data from their phones.

Anglers along Florida’s Gulf coast have been heading offshore over the past week to enjoy the start of Florida’s 40-day red snapper season, serving as a reminder of how important recreational fishing is to the state’s economy and heritage. While recreational fishermen as a group often have a wide range of opinions — such as what bait is best to use, what areas produce the best bites, or how big that fish really was — one area they’ve agreed upon is that the data federal fisheries managers have been using to regulate fishing is pretty lousy.

Fortunately, innovative new data collection approaches are being implemented this year that will allow anglers the opportunity to report their catch and help improve the data managers need to sustainably manage these fisheries. In other words, for anglers who have rightfully complained in the past about poor fisheries data, it’s put up or shut up time.

As the season begins, Florida’s more than three million licensed anglers have the opportunity to play a critical role in improving recreational harvest data by registering for the Gulf Reef Fish Survey, which is required for those targeting reef fish species, and by voluntarily recording their red snapper catches and trips on the iAngler Gulf Red Snapper smartphone app.

Data collected through the iAngler Gulf Red Snapper app, developed in partnership by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the Snook and Gamefish Foundation (SGF), will help fish and wildlife officials make more informed decisions as they manage this Florida fishery. Anglers fishing in Gulf waters can use the free app to track trips, log their catches, and the condition of the fish when and if it was released. Florida anglers can also monitor the locations they made their catches, the time of day and the type of fish they caught, along with photos.

The app not only provides anglers with fishing regulations across the country, a 48-hour weather forecast, and a 4-day tide report right at their fingertips, it’s also a helpful tool for the state to manage fishing data, as well as providing a platform for anglers to revisit their past trips and discover patterns from good and not so good fishing days.

For anglers on Florida’s east coast, the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAFMC) also partnered with the SGF to create MyFishCount.

Read the full opinion piece at the Pensacola News Journal

Florida spiny lobster harvest stunted by 2017 hurricane season

June 13, 2018 — “There isn’t a lobster trap in the state of Florida that was not impacted in some fashion by the hurricane,” said Bill Kelly, executive director of the Florida Keys Commercial Fishermen’s Association.

As a result, the spiny lobster season that ended March 31 was on the slow side, according to state landings data as well as fishermen and wholesalers.

About 90 percent of the spiny lobster from U.S. waters comes from around the Florida Keys.

Immediately after Hurricane Irma blew through south Florida in early September 2017, about 154,000 of the 350,000 lobster traps deployed annually in the waters around the Florida Keys were severely displaced or lost. About 60,000 were recovered by early May, Kelly said.

Landings data from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission shows nearly 3.3 million pounds harvested between the season’s start on Aug. 6, 2017, and its conclusion March 31, 2018. The previous year’s total was about 5.4 million pounds, and it was thought to be a fairly slow year, as well.

This year, the average price per pound was $9.30, with August averaging the lowest price at $6.72 and February the highest at $11.66.

“Dock prices started out on the slow side,” Islamorada lobsterman Gary Nichols agreed, but then rallied. February’s high reflects so many being exported to China for the Chinese New Year, he said.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

FLORIDA: Red Snapper Season Starts June 11 in Gulf

June 5, 2018 — The recreational red snapper season will start June 11 in Gulf state and federal waters and remain open through July 20, closing July 21. This year and next year are unique compared to previous years in that Florida’s Gulf recreational red snapper season applies to harvest from both state and federal waters.

Anglers fishing from private recreational boats will need to have their recreational saltwater fishing license (unless exempt) and will need to have Gulf Reef Fish Angler on their license (includes those that are exempt) to target red snapper or other certain reef fish in Gulf state and federal waters (excluding Monroe County). You can get this printed on a license at no cost at GoOutdoorsFlorida.com or by visiting any location you can purchase a license.

For-hire operations that do not have a federal reef fish permit may also participate in this 40-day season but are limited to fishing for red snapper in state waters only. These operations must have State Gulf Reef Fish Charter on their license to target red snapper and other reef fish in Gulf state waters (excluding Monroe County). This can be done at no cost at a local tax collector’s office.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has also partnered with Snook and Gamefish Foundation on a new smartphone app specifically for voluntary reporting of red snapper catch information. This app will be available soon on your phone’s app store by searching for iAngler Gulf Red Snapper for private anglers or iAngler Gulf Red Snapper Charter if you are a charter operation. Using the app is important because it will help us test real-time data collection.

Read the full story at The Fishing Wire

Sustainable Shark Fisheries and Trade Act Receives Broad, Growing Support

May 21, 2018 — A growing coalition of industry groups, conservationists, scientists, and other stakeholders are rallying behind a bill that promotes global shark conservation, while protecting responsible U.S. fishermen. The bill, Sustainable Shark Fisheries and Trade Act, is undergoing a markup before the Senate Commerce committee on Tuesday, May 22. Similar, bipartisan legislation from Rep. Daniel Webster (R-FL) and Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) is under consideration in the House.

Introduced by Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), the bill would require that all countries exporting shark fins to the U.S. receive certification that their shark fisheries have an effective ban on the practice of shark finning, and adhere to sustainable management practices like those in U.S. fisheries. The new certification program would be similar to the existing U.S. shrimp certification program.

The United States has been praised for having among the strictest and most conservation-minded shark management in the world; all shark species are required to be harvested at sustainable rates, and the practice of shark finninghas long been banned.

The bill’s approach to conservation, which would preserve the jobs of responsible, law-abiding shark fishermen in the U.S. while promoting a high standard of shark conservation abroad, has won support from a broad cross-section of shark fishery stakeholders, including the Sustainable Shark Alliance. It is joined in its support by leading conservation groups, such as the Wildlife Conservation Society; shark experts at the Mote Marine Laboratory; 62 leading shark scientists; recreational fishing organizations such as the American Sportfishing Association, the Center for Sportfishing Policy, and the Coastal Conservation Association; the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission; and the Diving Equipment and Marketing Association.

“The Sustainable Shark Fisheries and Trade Act allows the United States to continue its role as a global leader in shark conservation and management,” says Shaun Gehan, a representative for the Sustainable Shark Alliance. “Unlike other bills that would ban the sale of shark fins outright, this bill maintains our own rigorous conservation standards, while allowing U.S. fishermen to maintain their livelihoods by responsibly utilizing every part of the shark.”

About the Sustainable Shark Alliance
The Sustainable Shark Alliance (SSA) is a coalition of shark fishermen and seafood dealers that advocates for sustainable U.S. shark fisheries and supports healthy shark populations. The SSA stands behind U.S. shark fisheries as global leaders in successful shark management and conservation. The SSA is a member of Saving Seafood’s National Coalition for Fishing Communities.