GULF REEF FISH SURVEY

If you fish for snapper, grouper & other reef fish in Florida, you owe the state your two cents.

Sign up as a Gulf Reef Fish Angler via GoOutdoorsFlorida.com or by phone at 1-888-FISHFLORIDA.

BY AMANDA NALLEY

If you’re a Florida angler and don’t know it already, you need to sign up for the Gulf Reef Fish Survey to target reef fish. The requirement, which began just about a year ago, isn’t about bringing in more money—signing up is free—it’s about better, faster, recreational reef fish data.

The Gulf Reef Fish Survey was implemented in early 2015.

“This is something anglers have been asking for, for a long time, ” said Martha Bademan, federal fisheries section leader of FWC’s Division of Marine Fisheries Management. “Anglers wanted more precise and timely information about what is happening on the water. ”

The Gulf Reef Fish Survey is a new and innovative way for reef fish anglers to help the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) improve recreational data collection and better inform management decisions on species like red snapper. Participation is mandatory if you plan to harvest these reef fish, but is easy to do and, again, at no cost. A selection of those who sign up as Gulf Reef Fish Anglers will receive a questionnaire in the mail to report information about their recent recreational fishing trips.

And Florida is not alone in the desire for better data. Other states along the Gulf Coast have also started enhancing data collection for their anglers. Why? While NOAA’s data collection process includes plenty of information from inshore anglers, information from reef fish anglers is underrepresented.

“We saw an opportunity with the Gulf Reef Fish Survey to actually collect data directly from the people that are fishing for reef fish, ” Bademan said.

“We are very excited about Florida taking this huge step to collect this data, ” said Pam Anderson, operations manager of Capt. Anderson’s Marina in Panama City. Anderson was one of the stakeholders who asked to get the Gulf Reef Fish Survey off the ground. “It is a positive change for us. ”

The Gulf Reef Fish Survey is for anglers (including those 65 and older) fishing in the Gulf of Mexico from a private boat, who plan to harvest, possess or land any of the following reef fish: red and vermilion snapper; gag; black and red grouper; gray triggerfish; greater and lesser amberjack; banded rudderfish; and almaco jack.

Gulf Reef Fish Anglers who are contacted by the FWC and provide information about their Gulf reef fish fishing activities will be entered into a drawing to win an annual, 5-year or lifetime recreational saltwater fishing license.

All you have to do is sign up as a Gulf Reef Fish Angler via FWC’s licensing system. You can do this online at GoOutdoorsFlorida.com; in person at tackle shops, sporting goods stores and your local tax collector’s office; or by phone at 1-888-FISHFLORIDA (347-4356).

Renew annually, just like any one-year license, and keep a copy of your license on you, be it paper or electronic, to show that you’ve signed up. That’s it. You do not have to keep a fishing log (unless you just really want to) or call FWC to report what you caught. Just be ready to respond to an FWC survey when it arrives.

To learn more about the Gulf Reef Fish Survey visit MyFWC.com/Fishing and click on “Saltwater, ”“Recreational Regulations” and “Gulf Reef Fish Survey. ”