New Florida Fishing regulations
Date | Fish | New Regulation |
January 2002 | Snook | Snook regulations have changed for the Gulf coast, Everglades National Park, and all of Monroe County. The daily bag limit has been reduced to 1 snook per person, per day, and the closed season now runs Dec. 15-Jan. 31 and May through August in these areas. The slot limit remains the same. The changes implemented reflect the different fishing pressure and different population dynamics that snook have on the Florida West Coast compared to the Florida East Coast. |
July
25-26
March 22, 2001
|
Spiny
Lobster Mini
Season
Cobia
|
The
spiny
lobster
sport season
will fall on
July 25th
and 26th for
2001.
The
bag limits
are 6 per
person, per
day for
Monroe
County, and
12 per
person, per
day for the
rest of
Florida.
There
are no
vessel
limits for
the sport
season only,
and
possession
limits are
enforced on
and off the
water.
The
possession
limit on
the water
is equal to
the daily
bag limit,
and off
the water
is equal to
the daily
bag limit on
the first
day, and
double the
daily bag
limit on the
second day.
Spiny
lobster has
a minimum
size limit
that must be
larger than
3"
carapace,
measured in
the water.
A
reminder
that
possession
and use of a
measuring
device is
required at
all times,
and night
diving is
prohibited
in Monroe
County (only
during the
sport
season).
A
recreational
saltwater
license and
a crawfish
endorsement
is needed
for harvest. Regular
lobster
season is
August 6
through
March 31.
The
bag limit is
24 per
vessel or 6
per person
per day,
whichever is
greater.
The
vessel limit
applies only
in state
waters and
does not
apply in
federal
waters.
Only
individual
bag limits
apply in
federal
waters.
State
waters
extend to
nine
nautical
miles on the
Gulf of
Mexico and
three
nautical
miles on the
Atlantic. 1 fish per person per day, 6 per vessel per day, whichever is less. Anglers must also possess a saltwater products license and a restricted species endorsement to sell cobia or exceed the one-fish daily bag limit. The minimum size requirements remain the same for cobia, 33" fork. Cobia are a migratory species, meaning they can travel great distances in a single year. One cobia that was tagged off of Mississippi was recaptured off the coast of South Carolina. In Florida waters, cobia move south and offshore as temperatures drop in the fall and winter. Cobia are summer spawners (May-September), and female cobia can spawn several times each season. For the past 5 years, recreational landings of cobia have been 85% of the total harvest. The largest cobia ever caught in Florida with conventional tackle was 130 lb 1 oz off Destin (1997) and the largest on caught with fly tackle was 83 lb 4 oz off Key West (1986). |