Tag Archives: Ryan Gandy
New regulations aim to protect Florida’s stone crab population
For Floridians, October has one more holiday than what might be on most calendars: the start of stone crab season. Starting Oct. 15, recreational and commercial fishermen are able to harvest the species that holds a spot as one of the five most important fisheries in Florida, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Although stone crabs are found from North Carolina to Belize, 99% of the stone crab harvest for the entire United States come from Florida. And this year, the FWC began implementing new regulations in an effort to conserve the longevity of this important fishery. >>click to read<< 08:29
How stone crab season survived a hurricane
The lobster season ended for many before it really had much of a chance to begin. But for those who fish both stone crabs and lobster, high market prices for stone crabs and steady production this season, which ends this week, was what they needed to stay afloat after Irma. The hurricane had displaced or destroyed anywhere from half to a third of the 350,000 lobster traps fished in the Keys during the season that runs from Aug. 6 to March 31. “It wasn’t a great season, and it wasn’t a terrible season,” George Niles, Lower Keys commercial trap fisherman said,,, >click to read<16:46
Where have the stone crabs gone? Shortage of Florida delicacy drives up prices
Less than halfway through Florida’s lucrative stone crab season, traps are drying up, dealing another blow to a fishing industry still recovering from a beating delivered by a brutal Hurricane Irma. “Everybody’s feeling it,” said Walter Flores, owner of the Golden Rule Seafood in Palmetto Bay, which has been selling and serving stone crabs since 1943. Normally Flores starts taking orders for holiday crabs about now. But this year, he said, it’s first come, first serve. “We have them,” he said, “but you have to offer more money to get them. It’s almost a bidding war.” click here to read the story 09:00
