Frigid Florida: Snook, Iguanas, Pythons Die in the Cold

Frigid Florida: Atlantic Snook Season Had a Cold Opening

Sunday was the spring season opener for snook in many parts of Florida (Feb. 1), yet it was the coldest weekend the Sunshine State has experienced since 2010. Then, there was a 12-day stretch when, according to data from West Palm Beach, air temperatures never reached above 45-degrees.

This week, temperatures have dipped in to mid-20s by Sunday and have only risen to the high 50s by midday by Tuesday. Since then, reports are widespread that snook got killed statewide, especially in the Northern Indian River Lagoon, north of Tampa, all the way through Estero and Fort Pierce.

One fishing guide, Capt. Austin Campbell of Chews Wisely fishing charters in New Smyrna Beach, believes the snook (and trout) kill was so bad that he thinks the FWC should have a moratorium on snook harvest, similar to what happened following the 2010 freeze in Florida.

Here are some other well known Florida animal outcomes from the freeze the last few days:

- Manatees: TV news reports have shown manatees gathered by the hundreds wherever there is a warmwater outflow or spring. Blue Spring had a count of 834 manatees; TECO power plant in Tampa has no official count, but local TV shows well over 1,000; Crystal River has well over 500 manatees; FPL Riviera Beach was not calculated but is clearly close to 400 manatees scattered nearby. Number of cold kills are not known until some time passes.

- Iguanas: Rarely will any iguanas reach beyond Indian River County on the north, Hillsborough County on the west. And sightings of iguanas in St. Lucie County are not very common. But in Palm Beach County, FWC officials have already collected more than 1,000 where they are being humanely euthanized. They are still falling from palm trees, too.

- Pythons: They are really good at covering up in the limestone ground cover and being difficult to find. No telling what they numbers are.

- Peacock bass: Peacock bass found in Port St. Lucie died from a pond unknown by anglers.

- Clown knifefish, Mayan cichlids, armored catfish: More invasives known to die off in the extended cold weather.

- Bonefish, sennet, mojarra, spadefish, lane snapper, tarpon: Casualties found in the Indian River Lagoon near Jensen Beach.

Snook are managed by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) in nine management zones across the state, three of which are along the state’s Atlantic Coast—the Northeast zone, the Indian River Lagoon zone and the Southeast zone—which encompass almost the entire eastern half of the State of Florida. Snook fishing regulations for these Atlantic zones include:

• Open season:  Feb. 1–May 31 and Sept. 1–Dec. 14
• Closed season: Dec. 15–Jan. 31 and June 1–Aug. 31
• Bag limit: One fish per person per day
• Slot limit: 28–32 inches total length
• Inland waterways: Regulations apply to St. Johns River, Kissimmee River, Lake Okeechobee which are freshwater, but have snook living there.

Report fish kills or other abnormal fish behavior to FWC at www.MyFWC.com/ReportFishKill or by calling the FWC fishkill hotline at 800-636-0511.

In 2010, much of the state—including areas throughout the Everglades, 10,000 Islands and Florida Keys—experienced cold weather below the lethal thresholds for snook and many other warmwater fish species. Millions of the fish perished in Florida’s estuaries including mojarra, lookdowns, gafftopsail catfish, tripletail, juvenile Goliath grouper and more. Also killed by the cold were non-native or invasive species such as peacock bass, clown knifefish, armored catfish, pacu and reptiles like iguanas, tegu lizards, pythons, agama lizards and others. Manatees can also suffer from cold stress. In 2010, 282 manatees were killed statewide by the cold with another 200 mortalities classified as undetermined.

                                   
                                   
                               

Here is what you can do: If you see problems with snook or any other fish in your region, reach out to the Florida Sportsman Action Spotter reporters (contacts below) or Managing Editor Ed Killer ed.killer@outdoorsg.com.

Panhandle: Capt. Gabrielle Barnes, www.ladyluckadventures.com 
Northwest: Bill Greer, wagreer@comcast.net
Big Bend: Capt. Joe Richard, joe@seafavorites.com
West Central: Capt. Ray Markham, www.captainraymarkham.com
Southwest: Capt. Greg Stamper, www.snookstampcharters.com
10,000 Islands: Capt. Lou Volpe, lvvolpe@aol.com 
Florida Keys: Capt. Pepe Gonzalez, www.pepeskeywestcharter.com
Northeast: Capt. Rick Ryals, rick.ryals@outdoorsg.com
East Central: Matt Badolato, mbadolato2010@my.fit.edu
Southeast: Brenton Roberts, brenton.roberts@outdoorsg.com
South: Capt. Alan Sherman, www.getemsportfishing.com

---