New Manatee Rules?
Boaters urged to support Senate Bill 540.

Florida boaters and fishermen may want to urge Gov. Jeb Bush to support and sign Senate Bill 540, which would provide common sense rules for boaters and manatees.

For instance, if lightning is striking around the boat and people consider themselves to be in imminent danger, they should be able to put the boat on plane, and leave a slow zone.

Other sections of the bill include provisions for speeding up for reasonably unforeseen circumstances, such as rendering aid to persons, or a vessel in distress.

Various friends of manatees are concerned about the bill, but there are situations where common sense should allow boaters to speed up in restricted, no-wake zones designed to protect manatees.

Additionally, the bill calls for better accounting of manatee populations and the development of more comprehensive scientific evaluation of the species.

Contact the Governor by e-mail: jeb.bush@myflorida.com Send letters by snail mail to: PL 05 The Capitol, 400 South Monroe Street, Tallahassee, FL 32399-0001

Phone: 850/488-4441, Fax: 850/487-0801

Data from a Bottle?
Researchers float glass vials to determine fish and conch patterns.

If on your run to hot fishing grounds, you should happen across a glass vial bearing a number, pick it up. You could help fisheries’ scientists in the study of fish and conch larvae and how wether patterns affect our marine environment.

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission biologists began releasing the bottles on May 24. Plans call for the vials to be released at five reef locations in the Florida Keys. Mexican scientists working in conjunction with the FWC researchers will also release vials at several locations along the country’s Gulf of Mexico shoreline.

Anyone who finds a vial should report the find by calling or e-mailing the numbers found inside. You should also be ready with more info—the drift vial number, the date you found it and where you found it. For more details, visit http://www.floridamarine.org./features/view_article.asp?id=22760.

FS Field Editor Passes
Al Hubbard was known for his informative writing and humor.

Al Hubbard, a Field Editor and contributor to Florida Sportsman for nearly a decade, passed at age 59 following a prolonged illness.

Al was best known for his love and knowledge of all aspects of the outdoors from hunting to big-game fishing. He was comfortable and happy catching cobia along the beaches or bream in a small pond. Al informed readers statewide as a Field Editor for Florida Sportsman, an outdoors correspondent for the Panama City News Herald, and with his TV spots on WJHG News Channel 7 in Panama City. He taught viewers how to fish with humor and from a solid knowledge of his subject. He was also the annual host of the famous Bay Point Billfish Invitational.

A native of Lubbock Texas, Al retired as a major after 22 years in the U.S. Air Force. He moved to Florida in 1983, and to Panama City in 1988.

The FS family and readers extend warmest sympathy to his surviving wife, Sandy, mother LaVerne, daughters Paige, Shannon and Chrystal, sisters Sammye and Johnnye, and six grandchildren.

Quota Hunt Applications Available June 1
Fall is still a long ways off, but for serious Florida hunters, now is the time to start planning.

Hunters take note: Some of the best opportunities on public lands in Florida require registration many months in advance.

Each year, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission administers quota hunts on some of its more popular Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs). As the name quota implies, these cap the number of hunters allowed onto a WMA—promising better chances at bagging game, and a safer, more satisfying hunt all around.

Regular quota permits allow hunters to hunt during the first nine days of the general gun season and other gun hunts on some WMAs. Special quota hunt applications are for permits to take part in some archery or muzzleloader hunts.

Quota hunt applications will be available starting June 1, from FWC offices, tax collectors’ offices and subagents (certain sporting goods stores, for instance). Applications are free, but you must have a valid WMA permit to apply.

The FWC has added four new WMAs to the quota system this year: 20,909-acre Steinhatchee Springs WMA in Dixie, Lafayette and Taylor counties; 21,714-acre Dinner Island WMA and 7,486-acre Spirit of the Wild WMA, both in Hendy County; and 5,092-acre Salt Lake WMA in Brevard County.

Applications that arrive at the FWC Tallahassee office June 1-11 will be eligible for the random selection process that will fill the quota for many of the hunts. Leftover permits after June 11 will go out on a first-come, first-served basis.

Visit www.myFWC.com for more about the quota hunt system.

Fuel-saving Trailer Tips
Prepare before hitting the road to maximize fuel economy.

With gas prices hovering at an all-time U.S. high, it pays to follow some easy rules regarding trailering your boat to cut fuel expenses. The folks at ShorLand’r Trailers offered these steps to make life easier on the tow road.

1. Check tire pressure on your tow vehicle and boat trailer. Properly inflated tires are not only safer, they promote fuel economy. 2. Check the tongue weight of your trailer (with boat). As a rule of thumb, tonfue weight should be approximately five to seven percent of the total tow package—boat, motor, trailer and gear. Correct tongue weight reduces “swaying” on the highway. 3. Balance and load boat evenly on the trailer. It should be level to facilitate towing, loading and unloading and to reduce wind resistance. 4. Use vehicle suitable for boat you plan to tow. Match vehicle’s tow rating to trailer weight. For instance, never use a vehicle rated to tow 2,000 pounds to haul a 3,000-pound boat. 5. Buy a boat cover. Covers reduce wind resistance so they increase mileage. Covers also protect your investment. 6. Double-check hubs and bearing buddies. Lube hubs as needed, then check regularly. If you’ve just towed your boat a long distance, gice hubs a minute or two to cool down before backing trailer down ramp to launch your boat. 7. Maintain a safe and steady speed. ShoreLand’r recommends you tow boat 5 mph under posted speed limit and to accelerate slowly and steadily from stops.

Make these recommendations part of your daily towing routine and not only will you be safer, you should consume less fuel, too, while trailering the boat to your fishing hole.

…And Save More Bucks After You Launch
Don’t let gas prices sink your fishing trip

Boat owners will feel the gas price crunch this summer, but there are measures you can take to take to keep a few bucks in your wallet. Excess weight cuts fuel economy, so consider carrying less fuel (which weighs over 6 pounds per gallon) on those short trips. Just don’t cut it too close, or your savings and then some will go straight into the tow master’s wallet. Water is even heavier at over 8 pounds per gallon. Larger boats with big potable water tanks can get by with a fraction of a full tank on day trip. To further lighten your load, consider leaving unnecessary gear at home.

An untuned engine also eats more gas, and a damaged or excessively worn prop can account for a 10 percent loss in fuel economy. Have you checked your hull lately? Barnacles, algae and other marine growth produce drag, which puts additional load on your engine, which increases fuel consumption, too.

The way you pilot your boat comes into play as well. Trim your boat correctly at planning speed, and if you lack trim tabs, distribute the weight aboard to help you plane out and stay on plane at lower speeds. You might consider installing a fuel flow meter to monitor fuel consumption—it will tell you when you are running most economically, and will pay for itself over the long haul. Don’t idle unnecessarily at the gas dock, while rigging up your rods, or at the ramp. And consider drift-fishing rather than trolling, if possible.

Last but not least, resist the urge to impress the gals at the sandbar with those jackrabbit starts. Those big hole shots put a hole in your bank account.

Sound Off on Cast Gill Nets
Public workshop to address cast gill net issues set for June 2 in Stuart.

Mark June 2 on your calendar. That’s the date the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will hold an important public hearing in Stuart, Florida—the hotbed of cast gill-netting (see “Conservation Front” Florida Sportsman’s April issue).

This hearing could have serious ramifications for the rest of the state if cast gill nets keep spreading.

Cast gill nets nets are nothing more than a new type of non-selective entangling gear. They’re made of the same material and snare fish by gilling them--a type of commercial equipment Florida voters elected to remove from state waters.

The nets have become a major problem at Peck Lake, a wintering hole for Spanish mackerel where commercial netters remove thousands of pounds daily to ship to fish markets.

The public workshop runs from 6 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, June 2, at the City Commission Chambers, City Hall, 121 SW Flagler Ave., Stuart, Florida.