The state responded to an outbreak of red tide by temporarily setting a catch-and-release rule for Tampa Bay’s population of snook, redfish and spotted seatrout.
The rule took effect July 16 and continues through Sept. 16, according to a July 16 news release from the FWC.
The rule applies to:
- All Florida waters of Manatee County north of State Road 64/Manatee Avenue, including the Braden River and all tributaries of the Manatee River, excluding all waters of Palma Sola Bay;
- All Florida waters of Hillsborough County;
- All Florida waters of Pinellas County, excluding all waters of the Anclote River and its tributaries.
“While it’s unfortunate that we must do this so close to the recent reopening of these species to harvest in this area, we know temporary catch-and-release measures such as these are successful in keeping fisheries sustainable throughout red tide events such as this one,” said FWC executive director Eric Sutton said in the release.
Brian Gorski, executive director of the nonprofit Coastal Conservation Association Florida, said, “We’ve seen the devastation to the redfish, trout and snook populations in Tampa Bay and we support the catch-and-release initiative taken by FWC.”
For more information, go online to myfwc.com/marine.
— Lisa Neff