MINDS AT THE TOP

Coral restoration (left) and collecting fishery data (right) are just a couple of the FWC projects that ultimately affect fishery management decisions. Photos: MyFWC.com/Research.

McRae, director of the Fish and Wildlife Research Institute in St. Petersburg, and McCawley, director of the FWC marine fisheries management division in Tallahassee, along with their staffs, work closely to develop and implement an annual marine fisheries work plan. The work plan considers concerns of anglers and commercial fishers; suggestions by the seven FWC commissioners; data developed by FWRI scientists; and issues raised by federal management councils, such as the Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic. They work to develop plans to address both immediate needs and those likely to arrive in the near future.

Before any new rules for bag/size limits or closed seasons for a species are brought before commissioners, McRae’s marine fisheries staff of biologists, modelers and others perform rigorous scientific research—much of it focused on surveys of juvenile fish and what that stock will look like down the road.

McRae brings a long background in statistics and modeling to his job.

“It allows me to speak to scientists at their own level,” he said. “It’s a common language among all our disciplines to analyze data.”

Once the FWRI scientists have completed their work, it is turned over to McCawley’s staff.

“Our division has no policy or rule-making function,” McRae said. “Our job is to accurately assess the status of resources and communicate that to policy makers so they can use that to make their decisions.”

Added McCawley, “The agency decided many years ago to keep research separate from management. That way, the research stays objective and is not affected by political influence.”

McCawley’s marine management staff in the state capital looks at FWRI’s scientific findings and begins the process of developing draft regulations. Staffers may hold regional public workshops to garner stakeholder input on what those rules might look like. A statewide working group might be convened—as in the case of snook in 2006—to propose management measures to boost the health of a stock. McCawley’s people would then draft rules for commission consideration. New management measures typically take about a year from inception to final adoption. Coming up in 2016: a new snook stock assessment and valuable information gathered at a statewide snook symposium in early January.

But neither McCawley nor McRae, nor their divisions, works in a Floridacentric bubble. Because of Florida’s vast geographic area spanning both Gulf and Atlantic waters that harbor a wide array of species, both offices hold key roles in federal fisheries management. McCawley has a seat on the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council while her colleague Martha Bademan holds a corresponding slot on the Gulf Council. Other colleagues participate on the Gulf States and Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commissions and on NOAA’s Highly Migratory Species advisory panel.

McRae’s staffers are members of the science and statistical committees advising both Gulf and Atlantic councils. They take the lead on stock assessments for species that occur mostly in Florida, such as mutton and yellowtail snapper and black grouper.

With their scientific backgrounds, neither McRae nor McCawley set out to become top administrators in their fields, but both relish the challenges.

“You’re in this job, not necessarily to advance yourself professionally, but to perform a public service, which is to make sure that conservation decisions are based on sound science,” McRae said.

Said McCawley, “I find the management side of marine fisheries challenging and rewarding, from building relationships and working closely with stakeholders to using science to make sound management decisions.”

Both administrators own fishing kayaks and enjoy the sport in their limited spare time—McRae in Tampa Bay and McCawley in the St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge near Tallahassee.

“To me, it’s about a passion for the marine environment—the species, the habitat,” McCawley said. “That’s the commonality we have with stakeholders— that passion.”

Keep Out! BY FRED GARTH