|
Species |
Size Limit
(Minimum Size unless stated as Maximum) |
Closed
Season |
Daily Recreational Bag Limit |
Remarks |
|
Amberjack, Greater |
28" Fork |
|
1 per person per
day |
W |
|
Amberjack, Lesser, Banded Rudderfish |
Not Less than 14"
Fork
Or
more than 22" Fork |
|
5 aggregate of
lesser amberjack and banded rudderfish |
W |
| Billfish |
Sailfish 63"
Blue Marlin 99"
White Marlin 66"
Swordfish 47" -- No Bag |
|
1 per
person per day aggregate billfish bag limit |
Species include
Marlin, Spearfish, and Sailfish. Federal Size limits apply. Measure from lower lip to fork. All landed fish must be reported to NOAA within 24 hours 800-894-5528. |
| Black
Drum |
Not Less than 14"
or more than 24" |
|
5 per person per
day |
May posses one
over 24"
W |
| Bluefish |
12" Fork |
|
10 per person per
day |
W |
| Bonefish |
18" |
|
1 per person per
day |
|
|
Clams-Hard |
1" thick across
hinge |
May not harvest half hour after official sunset until half hour before official sunrise. |
One 5-gallon
bucket per person or 2 per vessel, whichever is lesser per day |
Illegal to
harvest from closed areas. Call FMP for current information. |
| Cobia
(Ling)
Changed 3/22/01 |
33" Fork |
|
1 per person or 6 per boat per day which ever is less. |
W |
| Crab,
Blue |
|
|
10 gallons whole
per day |
5 traps maximum.
Trap requirements apply. Harvest of egg-bearing crabs prohibited. |
| Crab,
Stone |
2 3/4" Claw |
May 15 - October
15 |
1 gallon Stone
Crab claws per person or 2 gallons per vessel, whichever is less |
5 traps maximum.
Trap requirements apply. Illegal to process whole crab. Harvest of
egg-bearing crabs prohibited. |
| Crawfish
(Spiny Lobster) |
Larger than 3"
carapace, measured in the water |
April 1 - August
5
Exception: Sportsman's Season--last successive wed-thur of July
each year |
24 per
vessel or 6 per person per day, whichever is greater |
Recreational
trapping prohibited. Crawfish permit required.
Call BME for current information on Sportsman's Season. |
| Dolphin |
|
|
10 per person per
day |
G |
| Flounder |
12" |
|
10 per person per
day |
May be harvested
by spearing.
WGL |
| Gray
Triggerfish |
12" |
|
|
G |
| Grouper,
Black & Gag |
24" Atlantic & Monroe County Waters
22" Gulf |
|
2 per person per day Atlantic &
Monroe County
5 per person per day Gulf |
Included within 5
per person per day Grouper aggregate bag limit |
| Grouper:
Red, Scamp, Yellowfin, Yellowmouth |
20"
Scamp -
16" Gulf |
Included within 5
per person per day Grouper aggregate bag limit |
Red Grouper - 1 per day Gulf |
Are included in 5 grouper per person per day aggregate bag limit.
Illegal to buy or sell.
G |
| Grouper:
Warsaw and Speckled Hind (Kitty Mitchell) |
|
|
1 per
vessel, per day of each species. |
Are included in 5 grouper per person per day aggregate bag limit.
Illegal to buy or sell.
G |
| Grouper
ALL OTHERS |
|
|
Included within 5
per person per day Grouper aggregate bag limit
|
Includes:
Coney, Graysby, Misty, Red Hind, Rock Hind, Snowy, Tiger,
Yellowedge
Harvest
of Nassau Grouper and Jewfish prohibited.
WG |
| Hogfish |
12" Fork |
|
5 per person per
day |
G |
| Mackerel,
King (Kingfish) |
24" Fork |
|
2 per person per
day |
Bag limit in
Gulf-Atlantic fishery reduced to 1 when Federal waters are closed
to all harvest. Call BME for details.
W |
| Mackerel,
Spanish |
12" Fork |
|
15 per
person per day |
Transfer of
Spanish mackerel to other vessels is prohibited.
WL |
Mullet
Striped or Black |
|
|
Feb. 1 - Aug. 31 -- 50 per person per day, maximum 100 per
vessel |
Sept. 1-Jan. 31, 50 per person or vessel, whichever is less |
| Oysters |
3" |
June, July, and
August in Dixie, Wakulla and Levy counties.
July, August and September in all other areas. |
2 bags per person
or vessel, whichever is less per day. 1 bag = 60 pounds or two
5-gallon buckets (whole in shell). |
Apalachicola Bay
has summer and winter seasons/areas. Harvest from approved
shellfish areas only. Call FMP for current information. |
| Permit &
Pompano |
Not Less than 11"
or more than 20" fork |
|
6 per person per
day aggregate bag of Permit and Pompano |
May posses one
over 20" of either Permit or Pompano. Gigging, spearing or
snatching prohibited.
WGL |
| Pompano,
African |
Not less than 24"
fork |
|
2 fish per person
or vessel whichever is less |
Hook & Line Gear
only
WL |
| Red Drum
(Redfish) |
Not Less than 18"
or more than 27" |
|
1 per person per
day |
Gigging, spearing
and snatching prohibited.
WG |
| Red Porgy |
14", Atlantic |
CLOSED-STATE WATERS |
5 per person per day, Atlantic |
REEF FISH - RED
PORGY, CH 68B-14, F.A.C. (Effective March 6, 2000) Prohibits all
harvest of Atlantic red porgy from state waters.
WG |
| Scallops,
Bay |
|
September 11 to
June 30 |
2 gallons whole,
or one pint meat per person per day. No more than 10 gallons whole
or 1/2 gallon meat per vessel anytime. |
Harvest allowed
only in State waters of the Gulf of Mexico north of latitude 29
degrees, 17 minutes and 02 seconds north (from the south bank of
the mouth of the Suwannee River to near channel marker 21 westward
to the outer limits of state waters
G |
| Sea Bass,
Black |
10" (RECENT) |
|
Bag limit 20, Atlantic (RECENT) |
WG |
| Sea Bass |
8" |
|
|
Size
limit applies to all Sea Basses (Centropristis) except Black Sea
Bass. |
| Shad |
|
|
10 per person per
day, aggregate bag of all Shad |
American, Alabama
and Hickory shad are all part of aggregate. Hook and line gear
only. |
| Shark |
|
|
1 per person per
day, or 2 per vessel pre day, whichever is less |
Protected
Species. Practice of finning or filleting at sea prohibited. No
harvest of Sawfish, Basking and Whale Sharks or Spotted Eagle
Rays. |
|
Sheepshead |
12" |
|
15 per person per
day |
WGL |
| Shrimp |
|
April and May
closed in Nassau, Duval, St. Johns, Putnam, Flagler and Clay
Counties |
5 gallons per
person or vessel, per day, heads on. |
Must be
landed in whole condition. contact BME for closed areas.
G |
| Snapper:
Black & Wenchman |
|
|
Included within
10 per person per day Snapper aggregate bag limit. |
|
| Snapper,
Cubera |
Not Less than 12"
or more than 30" |
|
Included within
10 per person per day Snapper aggregate bag limit if under 30" |
May keep two over
30" per person or vessel per day. Over 30" not counted in
aggregate.
WG |
| Snapper,
Gray (Mangrove) |
10" |
|
5 per person per
day. |
Included within
10 per person per day Snapper aggregate bag limit.
WG |
| Snapper,
Lane |
8" |
|
Included within
10 per person per day Snapper aggregate bag limit if harvested
from the Atlantic. |
Lane snapper
harvested in the Gulf of Mexico not included within aggregate
snapper bag limit.
WG |
| Snapper,
Mutton |
16" |
|
Included within
10 per person per day Snapper aggregate bag limit. |
WG |
|
Snapper, Red |
20" Atlantic
16" Gulf |
Closed in Gulf Waters Nov. 1-Apr. 20.
|
Atlantic: 2 per person per day.
Gulf: 4 per person per day. |
Included within 10 per person per day Snapper aggregate bag
limit.
WG |
| Snapper,
Schoolmaster |
10" |
|
Included within
10 per person per day Snapper aggregate bag limit. |
WG |
| Snapper,
Vermilion |
10" |
|
Included within
10 per person per day Snapper aggregate bag limit if harvested in
the Atlantic. |
Not counted in
Snapper aggregate bag limit if harvested form the Gulf.
WG |
| Snapper -
All others |
12" |
|
Included in 10
per person per day Snapper aggregate bag limit. |
Includes
Blackfin, Dog, Mahogany, Queen, Silk and Yellowtail. |
Snook
(All Species) |
Not less than 26"
Not more than 34" |
December 15-January 31, and June, July and August
Also closed May in Gulf, Monroe County and
Everglades National Park |
2 per person per day
NEW: Bag Limit 1 in Gulf, Monroe County and
Everglades National Park |
Snook permit required. Illegal to buy or sell. State
regulations apply in Federal waters.
Illegal to posses any over 34"
WG |
Spotted
Seatrout
(South Region) |
Not less than 15"
Not more than 20"
Except one fish over 20" per person
|
November and
December |
4 fish per day
per person
One fish over maximum |
State
waters South of and including Pinellas county on the Gulf
South of and including Volusia County on the
Atlantic
WG
|
Spotted
Seatrout
(North Region) |
Not less than 15"
Not more than 20" |
February |
5 fish per day
per person
One fish over maximum. |
State
waters north of Pinellas county on the Gulf
North of Volusia County on the Atlantic
WG |
| Tarpon |
|
|
2 fish possession
limit |
Requires $50
tarpon tag to possess or kill. |
|
Triggerfish, Gray |
12" |
|
|
All other species
of triggerfish have live landing & live well requirements |
|
Tripletail |
15" |
|
2 per person per
day |
Hook and line
gear only. No snatch hooks.
WL |
| Weakfish |
12" |
|
4 per person per
day |
W |
| |
W - Must remain in whole
condition until landed ashore. (heads and tails intact) |
G - Gear restrictions apply.
Contact nearest FMP |
L- Length for these species
is defined as the most forward point of the head to the rear
center of the tail |
|
|
ORNAMENTAL TROPICAL FISH AND
PLANTS |
|
Minimum Size Limit (Total Length):
Spanish Hogfish 2", Spotfin Hogfish
3", Porkfish 1 1/2" |
|
Maximum size Limit (Total Length):
Angelfish (except rock beauty) 8", Butterfly,
Jawfish 4",
Rock Beauty 5", Gobies
2", Spanish Hogfish 8", Spotfin Hogfish
8" |
|
Bag Limit fishes/Invertebrates: 20 per person
per day. no more than 5 Angelfish and no more
than 6 Octocoral Colonies. Plants: 1 gallon per
person per day |
|
Live landing and live well requirements. Harvest
in Biscayne National Park & John Pennekamp State Park Prohibited.
Unlawful to harvest or posses Longspine Urchin,
Hard and Fire Corals, Sea Fans, Florida
Queen Conch and Bahamas Starfish.
Harvest of live rock in state waters is
prohibited. |
|
PROTECTED SPECIES |
|
It is unlawful to harvest, posses, land,
purchase, sell, or exchange the following species:
Nassau Grouper, Jewfish, Sawfish, Basking Shark, Whale
Shark, Spotted Eagle Ray, Sturgeon,
White Shark, Sand Tiger Shark, Bigeye Sand Tiger Shark, Manta
Rays. |
|
Regulations From FWC Division of
Marine Fisheries "Fishing Lines" Newsletter |
Saltwater Fishing in Florida...
What you Must Know Before You Go
This article is for all anglers. It contains the do's and
don'ts of fishing along Florida's coastline and from off its
shorelines. It explains who needs and who does not need a fishing
license, and it tells what fish - and how many may be taken home.
Saltwater Fishing licenses are sold at all county tax
collectors' offices and at many bait-and-tackle shops.
Licenses may also be obtained over the telephone by dialing Toll
Free, 1-888-347-4356. An additional fee of $3.95 is
charged for this service. For any recreational licensing
information not contained here please call 850-488-3641.
The law says anyone who takes, attempts to take, or
possesses marine fish for noncommercial purposes must have a
saltwater fishing license, except for those qualifying for
exemptions listed below.
Florida Residents
When applying for a saltwater fishing license, you
are considered to be a Florida Resident if you are:
-- any person who has resided in this state for six continuos
months prior to the issuance of a license and who has an intent to
continue to reside in Florida as their primary residence.
-- any member of the U.S. Armed Forces who is stationed in this
state (includes spouse and dependent children residing in
household).
Florida residents may buy a lifetime saltwater fishing
license or a lifetime sportsman license. Holders of lifetime
saltwater fishing licenses may fish in saltwater as long as they
live and will pay no additional fees. The license fee includes the
taking of snook or crawfish - which would otherwise require a
separate fee. A lifetime sportsman license allows holders to fish
in fresh water or salt water and to hunt in Florida. Both of these
licenses require holders to obey fishing or hunting laws in effect
at any given time. Costs for the four types of licenses:
|
Florida Resident Licenses *
One-Year License $ 13.50
Five-Year License ** . $61.50 |
Lifetime Saltwater Fishing License
Age: 0-4 $ 126.50
Age: 5-12 $ 226.50
Age: 13-64 $ 301.50
Age: 65 or older . . . . . . Free |
|
Combination Licenses (Florida
Residents Only)
Fishing-Saltwater/Freshwater....................$25.50
Fishing-Saltwater/Freshwater & Hunting...$35.50 |
|
Lifetime Sportsman License
Age: 0-4 . . . . . . . . $ 401.50
Age: 5-12 $701.50
Age: 13-63 . . . $1,001.50 |
Non-Resident Licenses *
Three-Day License $ 6.50
Seven-Day License $ 16.50
One-Year License $ 31.50 |
|
Additional Privilege Permit
Snook Permit............$2.00
Crawfish Permit.........$2.00
If you are not required to buy a license,
you are not required to buy a permit |
* Service charge and Snook and Crawfish
permits not included
** Purchased only at county tax collectors office
and
does not include snook or crawfish permits.
Tax collectors and the bait-and-tackle shops that act as
their
agents will assess an additional service charge of $1.50 or $2.00
per license. * |
You Do Not Need a License If You Are:
-- A Florida resident fishing from land or a structure fixed to
the land - a pier, bridge, dock, floating dock, jetty or similar
structure - but not from a boat.
-- A Florida resident who is 65 years old or older.
-- A Florida resident who is a member of the U.S. Armed Forces,
who is not stationed in this state, while on leave for 30 days or
less, upon submission of orders. This does not include family
members.
-- A Florida resident who is fishing for mullet in fresh
water--with a valid Florida fresh water license.
-- A Florida resident who is fishing for saltwater fish in
fresh water from land or from a structure fixed to the land.
-- Under 16 years of age.
-- Fishing from a boat that has a valid recreational vessel
saltwater fishing license.
-- A non-resident fishing from a pier that has a valid pier
saltwater fishing license.
-- A holder of a valid commercial saltwater products license.
(Only one person fishing under a vessel saltwater products license
may claim the exemption on the vessel for which the saltwater
product license is registered.)
-- Any person who has been accepted as a client for development
services by AHCA (Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration)
or any licensed provider of services through contract with AHCA,
where such service involves the need, normally, for possession of
saltwater fishing license and such service is provided as part of
a court-decided rehabilitation program involving training in
Florida's aquatic resources.
A Florida resident who is certified permanently and
totally disabled may obtain a "disabled persons certificate" which
allows them to fish in both saltwater and freshwater at no charge
from a county tax collector.
Other Saltwater Fishing Fees
Vessel licenses are required for all vessels that
charge a fee to take passengers out to catch marine fish.
Eleven or more customers...$801.50
Five to Ten Customers.........$401.50
Four or fewer customers.....$201.50
Optional fees include the annual Recreational Vessel fee
($2,001.50) for not-for-hire pleasure craft and the annual Pier
license, ($501.50) for piers that charge an access fee.
The money collected from saltwater fishing
licenses is used to improve and restore fish habitat and for
marine fisheries research, law enforcement, and public education
on marine resources. |
POINTS ON POSSESSION
Possession Limits for Multiple Day Recreational Fishing Trips
Many anglers are unsure or unaware of how bag and possession
limits affect them during fishing trips which exceed one fishing
day. Bag limits are daily limits for the 24 hour period beginning
at midnight and ending the following midnight. These bag limits
may not be exceeded at any time and are not considered "per trip"
limits. What's important in this definition is that once you have
caught and possess the bag limit for a species, you may not
harvest any more of this species until the next daily period.
Taking the catch to shore and then going back to harvest another
daily bag limit is illegal.
But what if you were fishing in the Bahamas? In this
instance, you are subject to the environmental laws of the Bahamas
and a violation of their rules may constitute a violation of U.S.
Federal laws. Contact the U.S. Coast Guard and Bahamian officials
for current information
Or what about camping on an island in state waters? Are you
able to possess an equal number of bag limits as the number of
days fished? In this case you are restricted to one daily bag
limit regardless of the number of days fished.
Other scenarios might be that you are camping on the
mainland, staying in a motel, at your beach house, in transit over
land from an extended fishing trip, etc. Under these
circumstances, the possession of multiple daily bag limits depends
on the species you intend to keep and more importantly, the
location where you possess the fish. The following table provides
you with the information needed to:
1) determine whether or not you can possess more than one daily
bag limit (on land) for an individual species when fishing for
multiple days
2) the locations where it would be prohibited to possess the fish
in excess of one daily bag limit
Tarpon - has no daily bag limit, but it is illegal
to posses more than two tarpon at any time. Any tarpon possessed
must have tarpon tag affixed.
Reef fish (snappers and groupers included within
the aggregate bag limit, hogfish, Atlantic coast red porgy, and
Atlantic coast black sea bass)- Any person who has fished
for more than one day may possess double the daily bag limit once
such person has departed the fishing site and is no longer within
100 yards of any state waters, docks, fishing piers, or other
fishing sites. Additionally, any person who has fished aboard a
charter vessel or headboat on a trip that spans more than 24 hours
may possess double the daily bag limit provided that the vessel
has a sleeping berth for each passenger aboard the vessel and each
passenger possesses a receipt issued on behalf of the vessel that
verifies the length of the trip.
If further clarification is required, please contact the
local district office of the Florida Marine Patrol. The
information contained in this chart can be found in the rules of
the Marine Fisheries Commission, Title 46 of the Florida
Administrative Code. You may access marine regulations through the
Marine Fisheries Commission web site at
|
Possession Table |
| May not posses species in
excess of one daily bag limit while in or on state waters.
Dolphin, flounder, marine life (tropicals, ornamentals,
etc.), mullet, mutton snapper, permit, pompano (including
African pompano), sheepshead, tripletail, weakfish. |
May not posses species in
excess of one daily bag limit while in, on or above the water
of the state or on any dock, pier, bridge, beach, or other
fishing site adjacent to such waters.
Amberjack (greater and lesser), banded rudderfish, black
drum, bluefish, cobia, gulf-Atlantic king mackerel *,
redfish**, Spanish mackerel and spotted seatrout. |
May not posses species in
excess of one daily bag limit at any time.
Bonefish, shad and snook. |
| * Possession of king mackerel
in excess of the daily bag limit by any person aboard a vessel
fishing in the Atlantic fishery shall constitute a violation.
** May not posses more than two redfish at any time
regardless of location. |
|
Recreational Gear
Some regional gear restrictions apply. Call your local
Bureau of Marine Enforcement (BME) office for
local regulations.
Hook-and-Line Gear
Hook-and-line fishermen must tend their gear at all times to
prevent people, marine life, and shore life from becoming
entangled in the line or injured by their hooks. Also, it is
against the law to intentionally discard any monofilament netting
or line into or onto the waters of the State of Florida.
Monofilament line can--and does--entangle birds, marine mammals,
marine turtles, and fish, often killing or injuring them.
Nets
The following types of nets may be used for recreational
purposes in Florida waters: Bully nets (for lobster only), landing
or dip nets, cast nets, push nets, beach or haul seins.
Recreational seines may have a maximum of 500 sq. ft. of mesh area
and no longer than 2" stretch mesh.
Traps
Traps may be used in recreational fishing for stone crab,
blue crab, shrimp, pinfish, and black sea bass, subject to the
appropriate regulations.
Explosives, etc.
The use of powerheads, explosives, chemicals, or the
discharge of Firearms into the water to kill or harvest marine
life is prohibited in State waters. |
Diving, Snorkeling, and Spearfishing
Diving, snorkeling, and spearfishing are some of the
most enjoyable ways we use Florida crystal-clear waters.
Spearfishing is popular in all of Florida's ocean and Gulf waters,
but it is especially popular in the southern half of the state and
in the coral reefs of the Florida Keys. If you are diving or
snorkeling - whether you are spearfishing or not - you must
display the Diver Down flag to show boaters that you an in be
area. Boaters should use extreme caution around Diver Down flags,
and divers should be careful when they surface as well.
In an effort to simplify existing spearfishing
regulations, the Marine Fisheries Commission has modified Chapter
46-20, F.A.C., "Spearfishing" to be entitled "Spearing". Spearing
is now defined as "the catching or taking of a fish by bow
hunting, logging, spearfishing, or any device used to capture a
fish by piercing its body. Spearing does not include the catching
or taking of a fish by a hook with hook and line gear or by
snagging (snatch hooking)". The use of powerheads, bangsticks, and
rebreathers remains prohibited. The following is a list of species
which are prohibited for harvest by spearing.
Any other
species not listed which are managed by the Commission, and those
not managed by the Commission are allowed to be harvested by
spearing.
-- Billfish (all species)
-- Bonefish
-- Nassau Grouper
-- Pompano |
-- Spotted Eagle Ray
-- Tarpon
-- Spotted Seatrout
-- African Pompano |
-- Sturgeon
-- Jewfish
-- Red Drum
-- Permit |
-- Manta Ray
-- Snook
-- Weakfish
--Tripletail |
-- Sharks
-- Blue Crab
-- Stone Crab
-- Lobster |
-- Families of ornamental reef fish (surgeonfish, trumpetfish, angelfish, butterflyfish, porcupinefish, cornetfish,
squirrelfish, trunkfish, damselfish, parrotfish, pipefish,
seahorse, puffers)
You May NOT Spearfish (excluding bowhunting and
gigging)
-- Within 100 yards of a public swimming beach, any commercial or
public fishing pier, or any part of a bridge from which public
fishing is allowed.
-- Within 100 feet of any part of a jetty that is above the
surface of the sea - except for the last 500 yards of a jetty that
extends more than 1,500 yards from the shoreline.
-- In Collier County and in Monroe County from Long Key north to
the Dade County line.
-- For any fish for which spearing is expressly prohibited by law.
-- In any body of water under the jurisdiction of the DEP's
Division of Recreation and Parks. (Possession of
spearfishing equipment is prohibited in these areas, unless it is
unloaded and properly stored.)
Fishermen who catch and/or sell fish harvested by
spearing are subject to the same rules and limitations that other
fishermen in the state are required to follow. |
