Atlantic snook harvest closes Dec. 15; catch and release still OK
News Release
Monday, December 13, 2010
Media contact: Lee Schlesinger, 850-487-0554
The recreational harvest of snook will close in all
Atlantic coastal and inland waters, including Lake Okeechobee and
the Kissimmee River, beginning on Dec. 15. The annual winter
harvest season closure of snook in these areas, which normally ends
on Feb. 1, has been extended until Sept. 1, 2011, by the Florida
Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) due to the
prolonged cold weather that impacted snook in Florida earlier this
year.
The extended harvest closure will help protect
snook populations this winter when they are most vulnerable to cold
weather and give snook added protection during next spring and
summer's spawning months. All other Florida waters are
already closed to the harvest of snook until next September for the
same reason.
Anglers may still catch and release snook during
the harvest closure, and the FWC encourages everyone to handle and
release these fish carefully to help ensure their survival upon
release.
Snook regulations apply to snook harvested in both
state and federal waters off Florida, and no person may possess any
snook caught during snook closed seasons.
For more information regarding the management of
snook in Florida, go to MyFWC.com/Rules (click on "Fishing -
Saltwater").
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