Florida’s Fishing Future Depends on Science-Based Management

Florida’s Fishing Future Depends on Science-Based Management

Florida has had a reputation for being the “Fishing Capital of the World,” and with good reason. Its sunshine, shorelines and sportfishing opportunities attract anglers from around the world. There are few other places in the world where in one visit an angler can target species as diverse as billfish, bass, snapper and mahi, as […]

We Must Take Action: Support Those Who Support Oceans and Fish

We Must Take Action: Support Those Who Support Oceans and Fish

Top photo: pilot whale with a rescue team from the Clearwater Marine Aquarium, FL. The ocean means a lot to a lot of people. Here’s why it means so much to me and how climate change and its impact on fish and habitat fit in. For years I had a scallop recreational fishing license on […]

Striped Bass & Menhaden Headline This Week’s ASMFC Meeting

Striped Bass & Menhaden Headline This Week’s ASMFC Meeting

Good news with menhaden, but it’s likely the Commission will fall short on striped bass Menhaden So, here’s the good news. It is highly likely, after a good 20 years of advocacy by anglers and environmental groups, that we’ll see menhaden managed in the context of its value as a prey species, by as early […]

Healthy Fisheries Need A Strong NEPA

Healthy Fisheries Need A Strong NEPA

The National Environmental Protection Act, more typically referred to as “NEPA,” was signed into law by President Richard Nixon on January 1, 1970, after receiving unanimous approval in the Senate and broad, bipartisan support in the House of Representatives, where it passed on a 372-15 vote. As its name suggests, NEPA establishes a national environmental […]

Summer Flounder, Scup & Black Sea Bass Data are Sobering. Could Electronic Recording be the Answer?

Summer Flounder, Scup & Black Sea Bass Data are Sobering. Could Electronic Recording be the Answer?

Capt. Dave Monti with fluke. NOAA gave east coast states a pass in 2020. However, new data shows anglers catching more fish than originally thought, and so 2021 regulations will likely be less liberal. Discussions at state fisheries meetings on 2020 regulations have been quite sobering for anglers on the East Coast. Recreational fishing regulations […]

Striped Bass & Bluefish: Same Problem, Different Managers, Very Different Approaches

Striped Bass & Bluefish:  Same Problem, Different Managers, Very Different Approaches

Striped bass and bluefish just go together. They’re both premier inshore gamefish of the New England and mid-Atlantic coasts. They frequently prey on the same schools of bait, with the bluefish slashing through the harried forage, while the bass follow beneath, feeding on the dead and the wounded. And they’re both overfished. But that’s where […]