Photo: Scott Toliver The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council has approved an increase in the red snapper quota from 8,460,000 pounds to 11,000,000 pounds for 2013. Fifty one percent of the increase will go to the commercial fishery, which is managed with an individual fishing quota (IFQ) program. The remaining 49% of the…
DetailsPhoto: Emily Muelstein The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will meet next week at the Crowne Plaza in Pensacola, Florida. The meeting is open to the public, but if you can’t make it you can listen in live from your computer. The committee agenda and full Council agenda will help you figure out when…
DetailsIt’s simply impossible to accurately count each individual fish swimming in the Gulf of Mexico, but not for lack of desire. The size, depth, and diversity of the Gulf makes accounting for every single fish unmanageable using current technology. The first article in this series, “How Hard Can it Really be to Count Fish?” describes…
DetailsPhoto: NOAA It’s hard to count fish. Not only do they move, but they are hidden from plain sight within the depths of the ocean. To complicate things, an overwhelming number of variables like weather, tide, and habitat make straightforward data collection difficult and test the limitations of gear and technology. Fisheries science is…
DetailsFiguring out how many fish are in the Gulf of Mexico and how many we can harvest isn’t rocket science; it’s harder. Photo: Stubb Harder, because fisheries are dynamic; and because there are an overwhelming number of factors like tides, temperature, salinity, composition of the ocean floor, nutrients, and biological interactions among fish that complicate…
DetailsGulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council Do you ever wonder what qualifies members of the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council to make decisions about our fish? After all, they play an important role in fisheries management, and decisions they make could potentially affect us all. Council members are tasked with a very difficult…
DetailsPhoto: Ben Despite annual increases in the recreational red snapper quota, the fishing season has become progressively shorter since 1996. This has negatively impacted both private and for-hire recreational fishermen. The Council is considering a pilot Days-at-Sea program to address the negative impacts that current management measures have had on the for-hire component of…
DetailsEver want to give the Gulf Council some advice? Not take a long walk off a short pier kind of advice but actually directly sharing your knowledge of the fishery with the Council. Would you be interested in reviewing documents and making suggestions before Council votes on anything? Would you be interested in…
DetailsPhoto: Kathy Hoak Why does the recreational red snapper season keep getting shorter even though we are seeing more red snapper than ever before? We know you’re seeing more snapper than ever before, and this is a great indicator that the rebuilding plan is working, but it does not mean that the stock is…
DetailsPhoto: Mark Miller Ahoy, We’re getting ready for next week’s Council meeting in Mobile, Alabama. The meeting will officially start on Tuesday, but the entire day will be closed session (not open to the public) while the Council interviews candidates for the Executive Director position. The meeting will open to the public on Wednesday…
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