The recreational harvest season for snook reopens on Feb. 1 in Florida’s Atlantic coastal and inland waters, including Lake Okeechobee and the Kissimmee River. The season is open through May 31.

Nearly 800 people are registered and ready to compete to see who can bring in the longest and the most Burmese pythons from designated public lands in south Florida, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) announced Saturday at the 2013 Python Challenge™ Kickoff in Davie.

A seasonal prohibition on the harvest of shallow water snapper-grouper species in federal waters of the South Atlantic is effective 12:01 a.m. January 1, 2013, through April 30, 2013, and applies to recreational and commercial harvest of shallow water grouper species.

The recreational harvest of snook will close in all Atlantic waters, including the inland waters of Lake Okeechobee and the Kissimmee River, beginning Dec. 15, with the last day of harvest being Dec. 14. The season will reopen in the Atlantic’s state and federal waters Feb. 1, 2013.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) unanimously decided on a draft 2013 Gulf of Mexico gag grouper recreational season Wednesday, Dec. 5, at its Commission meeting in Apalachicola.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is hosting two webinars in December to gather public testimony and input on the potential creation of saltwater game fish and sport fish designations.

Let’s talk straight. Lionfish are a challenge. Native to the Indian Ocean and South Pacific, these beautiful yet venomous creatures are spreading through our waters like a bad cold. Within their native range, lionfish fit nicely into the natural food web and their populations remain in check.

Even though young people are allowed to hunt and fish in Florida without having to buy a license until they turn 16 years old, a change in the license system now makes it possible for youngsters to voluntarily purchase their licenses early and start contributing today toward conservation.

The recreational harvest season for gag grouper in most Gulf of Mexico waters and vermilion snapper in the Atlantic Ocean will close on Nov. 1. These closures are intended to reduce overfishing and increase the population of gag grouper and vermilion snapper.

St. John’s Riverkeeping is hosting a birthday celebration for The Clean Water Act on October 24, 2012 at Sadler Point Marina in Jacksonville, FL.

Loggerhead sea turtle nesting was near a 24-year high along Florida beaches this year, according to data compiled by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) researchers. The loggerhead is listed federally as a threatened species.

“These fish are covering incredible distances,” observed IGMR co-chair and Stanford University marine biologist Dr. Randy Kochevar. “The data we are collecting through the IGFA Great Marlin Race are giving us a new level of insight…

Commercial netting interests are once again trying to manipulate the State into allowing larger mesh sizes in fishing nets and improperly using them as “gill nets,” the Coastal Conservation Association of Florida said today.

The workshop focus will be determining the public’s preferred dates for the 2013 Gulf gag grouper recreational fishing season. Potential changes to the Gulf of Mexico gag grouper bag limit will also be discussed…

We hope the responses provide you some insight about the candidates’ views on issues that impact recreational fishing and give you a basis to judge which candidate best serves the interests of you, the angler …

The 2012 recreational season for bay scallops, which was extended two weeks earlier this year, will close Tuesday, Sept. 25. The final day of harvesting is Sept. 24.

Ideal tag recovery involves direct and timely communication with the anglers or boat captains tagging and recovering the fish. Such is the case with the latest series of reported tag recoveries in 2012.

The red snapper recreational fishing season will open for two consecutive weekends made up of Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays this September.

The Maryland DNR misappropriated more than $3 million in Wallop-Breaux funds to finance programs for the state’s commercial striper fishery, says Stripers Forever.

Recreational and commercial blue crab traps must be removed immediately from the waters in certain areas of Florida’s east coast…»