[dropcap]L[/dropcap]obster Mini Season always falls on the last consecutive Wednesday and Thursday of July and is considered an annual tradition for many in South Florida. Dive shops have extended hours during the two-day sport season and some diehards even take off work. Experienced divers will focus on scouting spots and ensuring equipment is up to date while rusty divers should look into refreshing dive skills before heading out on the hunt at the end of the month. Specific whereabouts of these tasty critters become closely guarded secrets this time of year but in general there are a few go-to places on the Treasure Coast where lobster are common. The shallow reefs just outside of the Fort Pierce and St. Lucie inlets are great places to look for an easy catch but become picked over very quickly on opening day. For best odds in these areas, many divers plan ‘midnight madness’ trips to clean up during the first few minutes of the season before anyone else has a chance to dive the area. Offshore sites like the Loran Tower area or the Six-Mile Reef out of Stuart hold plenty of bugs and scouting trips are common a few days ahead to maximize chances of catching a limit. Calm seas during July usually provide more opportunities to make dive trips offshore and some divers have discovered an interesting way to offset costs and help the environment at the same time. By now, most divers know that lionfish have established themselves in local waters but many are surprised to learn how easy it is to harvest and sell lionfish at local fish markets. A Saltwater Product License is required and is easy to obtain from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, in fact these licenses have been offered as prizes in recent lionfish derbies. With growing demand from local restaurants and grocery stores, a big bag of lionfish can cover fuel costs for a whole day on the water. For more information on SPL visit http://bit.ly/FWC-CSFL.