July 1st means recreational gag grouper season for us here in the Gulf (minus Franklin, Wakulla, Taylor, Jefferson and Monroe counties). Anglers can harvest 2 gags within a 4 grouper aggregate (gag, red, black, rockhind/redhind, scamp, yellowfin/yellow mouth)… Read More
Recently horseshoe crabs about 1-2 inches in size have been observed swimming upside around sunset in upper Charlotte Harbor and people are asking “what’s up with this?” Well it turns out horseshoe crabs do swim upside down, or… Read More
So when was the last time you bragged to your friends about catching a big Megalops atlanticus or a nice Centropomus undecimalis? Umm, yeah … probably never! Most of us don’t speak scientific geek and aren’t impressed when… Read More
Most anglers understand we have two snook closures annually; each for very different reasons. The December through February closure protects snook during the cold weather and the May to September closure protects spawning snook. The size limits for… Read More
One of the more interesting parts of being a Sea Grant Agent is when people send me their ‘Do you know what this is?’ mystery finds. A recent one came from my friend Kelly. Kelly’s husband Jimmy, a… Read More
With the exception of humans, and our spayed and neutered pet friends, survival and passing on genes through reproduction are all encompassing for the remainder of the animal kingdom, the marine environment included. Marine organisms have a fascinating… Read More
[tribulant_slideshow gallery_id=”3″]—————————————————————————————————————————————– Every spring they appear in force, growing through the summer and then they seem to diminish in late fall. “They” are tunicates, affectionately known as sea squirts and sometimes sea pork. Tunicates are invertebrates, meaning they… Read More
The Charlotte County Board of County Commissioners approved two important boating and waterways planning documents on April 9th. Both documents were prepared by the University of Florida, Florida Sea Grant College Program to help the County prepare for… Read More
In March, Florida Sea Grant and NOAA partnered to conduct a series of workshops aimed at clarifying existing fisheries regulations for offshore recreational and commercial fishermen. Six workshops took place in Florida. During the workshops NOAA National Marine… Read More
Florida Sea Grant recently completed a study designed to provide Charlotte County with a planning instrument that specifies the type, quantity, and location of public shore access and boating facilities needed to meet anticipated demand through 2050 while… Read More
