Conservation

Environmental and waterway news.

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NOAA Fisheries Announces Sea Turtle Release Gear Workshops for Snapper-Grouper Permitted Vessels in the South Atlantic

August 12, 2013 NOAA Fisheries will conduct outreach workshops to review required sea turtle release gear for federal South Atlantic …

It’s More Than the Catch

As recreational anglers, we have all probably heard (and read) about it a million times. Search the internet and you are likely to find thousands of articles documenting “best practices” for releasing fish.

Fall Snapper Season, Really?

As many of you know, the Gulf Council has recently voted to have a fall red snapper season. Good news, eh? Yeah, I think so, but it could have been better. There are lots of moving parts involved in this, and I think it would be worthwhile to check them out, because in the next few months and years, these parts will still be moving, and more (and perhaps better) decisions will depend on them. First a quick summary of what went into creating the extended season.

Lionfish invasion…Let’s Fight Back!

The sport of spearfishing is governed by federal and state regulations, and we have the same size and creel limits as anglers. Spearfishing has been found to be the most environmentally friendly form of fishing due to being highly selective, having no by-catch, causing no habitat damage, nor creating stress or harm to protected endangered species. These facts prove a spearfisherman can harvest their catch without doing any harm to the reef, but can he actually help the health of the reef? Absolutely! The newest target species for us gulf coast hunters is the invasive lionfish. The last few years has seen an explosion in the local population of these beautiful, but extremely harmful fish.

Commercial Harvest of Snowy Grouper in South Atlantic Waters Closes on August 10

Commercial harvest of snowy grouper in South Atlantic waters will close at 12:01 a.m. (local time) on August 10, 2013. …

Raising the Bottom: Coastal Farmers on the Front-line

We arrived in Empire, LA an important port of the Mississippi Delta. This area of the Mississippi Delta took Katrina right on the chin and the wetlands continue to lose land at the most rapid pace of anywhere in the world…..thanks to erosion, subsidence, sea level rise, industrial traffic and the hurricanes of course.

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Florida’s Chain Pickerel

In the northern parts of our great country, anglers enjoy chasing down enormous pike and elusive musky. We Floridians don’t usually give a second thought, but they are in Florida!

LABAN WINS 34TH BASTILLE DAY KINGFISH TOURNAMENT WITH 26.90-POUND KINGFISH

Stretching 500 miles across the northern side of the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, the Puerto Rico Trench is the deepest in the Atlantic Ocean.

The Art of Kicking Fish

When the fish gets in the strike zone of the dolphins tail, you can see the dolphin looking at the fish and lining up the kick. It's a difficult technique to learn, and not all dolphins know how to do it. However, once learned, it provides an obvious advantage over simply chasing a fish and catching it with the mouth. A quick, precise flip of the tail and dinner is served, versus chasing a fish down and catching it with the mouth which can often take a few minutes and require a lot of energy.