 Fishing
News From The Florida Keys
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Here Cheeca Tournament a big successFor the second year in a row, Joe and Matthew Neber, Bill Cordes, and Wayne Savage won the outboard division and this year won the overall Cheeca Lodge Presidential Sailfish Tournament held January 26 in Islamorada with 11 Sailfish releases. Joe Neber is president of Contender boats and was fishing aboard the aptly named "Contender One." In the Inboard division, Captain Gerald Pohl and the crew of the "Palawan" brought home top honors with 7 Sailfish releases with anglers Tom Watson and Robert Sorenson. New Snook Regulations in Effect Feb 1Florida's snook season reopens Feb. 1, and anglers are advised that a new daily one-fish bag limit is now in effect for snook caught along the Gulf Coast and in the Florida Keys. In addition, the snook harvest season will now close beginning in May in those areas. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved the new rule provisions last November to reduce fishing pressure on Gulf Coast snook in order to increase the abundance of legal-size fish. FULL STORY... Islamorada "Hump" Removed from SAFMC's list of proposed MPA's The South Atlantic Fisheries Management Council (SAFMC) has unanimously voted to leave the Islamorada Hump from their list of Marine Protected Areas (MPA's) The MPA designation would have made the popular fishing destination off-limits to Keys commercial and recreational fishermen. The Hump is an underwater mountain approximately 13 miles off of Islamorada which lies in over 600 feet of water and rises up to within 240 feet of the surface. This uprising causes baitfish to concentrate and in turn, the predatory fish like Amberjack, Tuna, Wahoo and deep-water grouper and snapper also congregate at the Hump. An alternate location was presented by local fishermen, represented by Captain Bill Kelly and John Magursky, and was accepted by the committees. The full council will vote on the matter in December. Two councils did the voting on the MPA's and ironically, but not surprisingly, the committees were made up of the same members of the full council. No outside members were brought in to do the voting. Two more public hearings are scheduled for 2002 and 2003 so it's not over until it's over. Visit: www.safmc.noaa.gov TAG 'EM WINS IFC DOLPHIN 2001 Takes home $25,000 winner take all prize! Islamorada, FL-- Despite a rainy start, the day turned sunny for the Tag 'Em fishing team June 7, winning the Islamorada Fishing Club's Dolphin 2001. The highly competitive field of 25 boats was dominated by anglers Terry Caulder and Rusty McClam with Captain Greg Pope and Mate Matt Grynewicz taking top honors with 88.34 pounds of fish--the combined weight of three Dolphin, as well as the largest fish caught at 36.92 pounds. Full Story Keys Grouper Regulations Are ConfusingNew Gulf of Mexico federal regulations for grouper have increased the public's confusion over what they can catch and how big it has to be. Below, I will try to clarify the various recreational size and bag limits and commercial fishing seasons for grouper that affect fishermen in the Keys. Size limits. The confusion over size limits mainly concerns those for black grouper and gag. In Atlantic federal waters the size for black grouper and gag were increased from 20 to 24 inches total length in 1999 for all fishermen. The State of Florida implemented the same size requirements for all state waters in the Atlantic and for Gulf state waters in the Keys. Remember that Gulf state waters extend out 9 nautical miles from the shoreline. In 2000 the size limit for black grouper and gag increased in Gulf federal waters from 20 to 22 inches for recreational fishermen and to 24 inches for commercial fishermen. Full Story.. FWC AWARDED FEDERAL GRANT TO HELP FLORIDA KEYS TRAP FISHERMENThe Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has received a $4.8 million award from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to assist spiny lobster and stone crab fishermen in the Florida Keys who had uninsurable gear losses due to severe storms in 1998. Full Story Tortugas Ecological Reserve Takes Effect in Federal WatersAfter years of planning, rules designed to protect the
diverse marine life and lush coral reefs of the Tortugas in a no-take ecological reserve
take effect March 8 in federal waters of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. |
"Sherry D" Brings home victory and $25,000Capt Benny Spaulding and the crew of the "Sherry D" charterboat from the Bud 'n Mary's marina in Islamorada took home the top honors in the Islamorada Fishing Club's $25,000 winner-take-all Sailfish 2002 fishing tournament. Capt. Spaulding edged out Capt. Scott Stanzyk and the crew of the "Catch 22" by one fish in a back-and-forth battle for the lead that lasted for the better part of the electric day. FULL STORY... FLORIDA IS THE FISHING CAPITAL OF THE WORLDNo need to be modest about it -- Florida is the hands-down, unchallenged, undisputable Fishing Capital of the World. With more than 700 world-record fish catches on the books (seven times more than any other state) and recognition as the world's number one recreational fishing destination, Florida is gearing up to start bragging about it. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and Visit Florida -- the state's tourism promotional firm -- have hammered out a plan to spread the word that Florida is the best place in the world to fish. FULL STORY... Sanctuary Installs New Mooring Buoys Key West Visiting two spectacular Key West dive sites just got easier, thanks to the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary’s mooring buoy program. The Sanctuary’s mooring buoy team installed a buoy on the Stargazer underwater sculpture off Sand Key and placed a subsurface buoy on the popular wreck the Cayman Salver. Full Story
WILDLIFE ALERT NOW OFFERS REWARDS Wildlife Alert is designed to increase citizen participation in apprehending conservation law violators. Persons who report suspicious activities or actual law violations to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) are eligible for cash rewards if their information leads to an arrest. Rewards range from $50 to $1,000, based on the severity of the violation -- from fishing without a license to intentional taking of endangered species. Callers may remain anonymous and do not have to testify in court. FULL STORY FWC PUTS SHARK ATTACKS INTO PERSPECTIVE The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has received numerous telephone calls inquiring about the safety of swimming in the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico after several recent shark attacks, and officials want to put the attacks into perspective. FULL STORY Are Size Limits Working? Almost all of our popular species are managed by size limits. Size limits are an effective way to protect the reproductive potential of a fish stock. A general rule of thumb for management success with size limits is to give the fish a chance to spawn at least once before being caught. Although this is not all that scientific, it is based on a common sense understanding that a fishery does not kill every fish that reaches legal size and some spawning is guaranteed each year. Remember, that for a female to be successful in helping the population to remain stable only 2 of her eggs need to survive to adulthood and reproduce. This is why our fisheries are resilient and, even when overfished, all populations have the capacity to recover with proper regulations. Full Story HOW SHOULD WE BE COPING WITH THE NEW WARNINGS ABOUT MERCURY IN SOME SEAFOOD?A recent flurry of news and magazine articles, TV shows, and government announcements concerning mercury in seafood may have you wondering what is safe to eat and what risks are involved. Although we may never get definitive answers on specific risks, there is a general agreement that the benefits of seafood consumption outweigh the risks. The important thing to remember is that it all depends on your current health condition, what fish you eat, and how often you eat a particular type of fish. The main issue of concern in the recent stories is the levels of mercury in certain types of fish and risks posed to frequent seafood eaters, especially children and some women. The FDA recently announced that pregnant women and women of childbearing age who may become pregnant, nursing mothers, and young children should not eat shark, swordfish, king mackerel, and tilefish because these fish tend to have higher concentrations of mercury than most other fish. The FDA also emphasized, however, that fish generally is still one of the most healthy foods people can eat, especially for women and children. Full Story... NOAA Official Joins Turtle Hospital Director for Earth Day Turtle Release Marathon – Acting Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Scott B. Gudes joined Turtle Hospital Director Richie Moretti today for an Earth Day release of two rehabilitated green sea turtles into the waters of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. |
Becky Dixon Wins Gold Cup SeriesWith the conclusion of the Islamorada Fishing Club's Sailfish 2002 tournament, so concludes the Triple Crown Gold Cup Series. The series is comprised of the IFC tournament, the Cheeca Lodge Presidential Tournament and the Islamorada Sailfish Tournament. Anglers must register for the series before the tournaments are contested. Becky Dixon had the most sailfish releases with 16 in the three tournaments. Becky brings home a diamond-encrusted gold ring. Becky fished the Islamorada and the Cheeca tournament with Captain Paul Ross aboard the "Relentless" charterboat from Bud 'n Mary's Marina in Islamorada and she fished the IFC tournament aboard the "Class Action" with Captain John Johansen also from Bud 'n Mary's marina. Tournament Honors Late CaptainThe 13th. annual "Al Flutie Over The Hill Rip-off Sailfish Tournament" was won by anglers Joe and Jack Ruvo who were fishing aboard the "Man O War" with Captain Mark Ellis and Mate Jarrett Wood. The brothers had 8 sailfish releases to win the tournament. The "Tiki" came in second with 4 fish and the "Gotcha" also had 4 fish to take third place. 28 boats with 55 anglers aboard fished the tournament, recording 45 Sailfish releases. The event raised $18,000 for Cystic Fibrosis research and the Dream Catcher Foundation. Cooperative Fishery Management
Initiative Discussed
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