Tag Archives: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
Commercial Gulf Shrimp season reopens Saturday
The Gulf of Mexico commercial shrimp season for state and federal waters will reopen 30 minutes after sunset on Saturday, July 15, 2023. “The annual mid-May closure protects brown shrimp until they can reach larger, more valuable sizes during their major period of emigration from the bays to the Gulf of Mexico,” said Robin Riechers, TPWD Coastal Fisheries Division director. Federal waters (from nine to 200 nautical miles offshore) will open at the same time as state waters. The National Marine Fisheries Service chose to adopt rules compatible with those adopted by Texas. >click to read< 16:41
How an Unlucky Texas Fisherman Stumbled Upon an Environmental Catastrophe
Five years before a pair of bullets tore through his gut and heart, Billy Joe Aplin reached over the silt-smeared water of the tidal flats with a boat hook to snare a small buoy bobbing near the grassy shoreline. As he pulled it toward his skiff, the rope gathered in soggy coils by his white rubber boots. Billy Joe was a bear of a man, six feet with broad shoulders, strong nose, square jaw, and jet-black hair. Their skiff drifted calmly at the mouth of the Guadalupe River in San Antonio Bay, their favorite spot to lay traps. His wife, Judy, lit a cigarette and took a long drag in the Texas heat. His ten-year-old daughter, Beth, was already perched on her culling stool, ready to sort the catch. Billy Joe Jr. and Cheryl Ann, only five and four, huddled close to their mom. Superstitious fishermen thought it was bad luck to bring a woman on a boat, but by 1975, Billy Joe had endured such a streak of bum luck that he couldn’t afford not to bring his family out with him: they were his deckhands. >click to read< 14:09
Texas to Suspend Flounder Season as stocks continue to decline throughout the Gulf and South Atlantic
One of the most sought after saltwater fish on the Texas Coast will be off limits to commercial and sport fishermen starting Nov. 1. Citing negative trends and large scale declines in flounder populations over the past several decades, The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department will suspend the year round flounder season during a six-week period ending on Dec. 15.,, The fish’s native range stretches from North Carolina southward into Mexico, and nearly all of the states in this coastal region are witnessing similar population declines. >click to read< 12:30
Potential regulations loom for Texas’ southern flounder fishery
The recommendations were made in response to TPWD data that shows southern flounder populations have experienced a dismal decline over the last several decades. The proposals aim to protect spawning females during their annual migration to the Gulf of Mexico, much to the dismay of anglers whose passion and livelihood coincide with the fall flounder run. >click to read< 17:49
The Sting – Houston restaurants, fish markets cited for illegally purchasing game fish
Nineteen Houston-area restaurants and fish markets have racked up more than 150 citations after they were caught illegally purchasing game fish from undercover officers during a recently completed sting, officials announced Tuesday. A two-year operation conducted by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s law enforcement division found that the restaurants and fish markets were willing to bypass legitimate commercial fish dealers and purchase saltwater fish in the black market. Those fish included sea trout, red drum (redfish), red snapper, Southern flounder, black drum, catfish and croaker. >click to read<18:21
Freeport fisherman to be sentenced for catching red snapper without commercial license
A Freeport man is set to be sentenced Friday in a Houston federal court for lying to federal agents about a massive and unauthorized red snapper haul last March. Jamal Marshall, 36, who was only licensed for recreational fishing, pleaded guilty on Aug. 24 for lying to federal agents about hundreds of fish he’d brought in. He had 488 red snapper and 154 vermilion snapper on board the vessel when stopped by officials, a gross violation of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) catch limits. The fish had a market value of $30,000. But Marshall also admitted he had sold $35,000 worth of fish to Houston-area restaurants. click here to read the story 09:21
Recreational fisherman gets prison time for lying about red snapper haul
The tall tales about a 2016 fishing trip have caught up with Jacob Brown. His crime was not braggadocio but telling a falsehood about a tremendous haul. The Lake Jackson man was sentenced Wednesday to two months in federal prison for lying about a massive haul of red and vermilon snapper he said was meant to supply an Easter fish fry. He later admitted the fish were to be sold to restaurants. click here to read the story 09:17
Private Fishing Rights: Control Over Access to Seabed, Harvest at Issue in Texas
A novel claim that a fleet of commercial boats on the Texas coast has exclusive rights to thousands of acres of seabed — and the lucrative oysters found there — has spawned a flurry of high-stakes lawsuits and has state officials saying the move undermines their efforts to protect wildlife. Some fear the move could lead to a handful of commercial operators holding rights to depleted fisheries, freezing out smaller competitors. The fight could be fierce, in light of how the oyster market alone yielded 4 million pounds and $19.2 million in sales last year. Read the article here 11:39
Border-security push is reshaping role of Texas game wardens
SOUTH PADRE ISLAND — The early morning sky brightened to a slate blue, providing Luis Sosa with just the right camouflage. Sosa, a state game warden, steered a 65-foot boat over open water at the southern tip of Texas. Sosa and three fellow game wardens from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department watched the horizon and the radar screen aboard the boat, the Captain Williams. They were looking for signs of the Mexican fishing boats they had seen the day before, operating illegally in Texas waters. But the game wardens also kept an eye out for illicit activities,,, Read the rest here 11:43
Texas Legislators look for ways to save commercial oystering
A fight over 23,000 acres of sea bottom in Galveston Bay has the state reconsidering how the commercial oyster industry should operate in the future. At issue is a lease signed by the Chambers-Liberty Counties Navigation District, giving Tracy Woody and his father-in-law, Ben Nelson, the sole ability to harvest oysters in 23,000 acres of Galveston Bay. When the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and General Land Office refused to recognize the lease,,, Read the rest here 10:24
LDWF Announces 2015 Derelict Crab Trap Cleanup; Volunteers Needed
The 
was initiated by LDWF in 2004 to address removal of derelict and abandoned crab traps. In order to conduct the trap cleanups, licensed crab fishermen received a notice informing them that they must remove their crab traps from within the closure area during the closure period, and all remaining crab traps will be considered abandoned and may be removed by agency personnel or volunteers. For a map of the closure area click here. Read the rest here 19:42
Effects, lessons of 1983 freeze evident on Texas ecosystem
Ed Hegen still shivers at the memory of the frigid morning 30 years ago this week when the Rockport-based coastal fisheries biologist boarded commercial fisherman Bucky Vannoy’s skiff at Flour Bluff and they beat their way across miles of a leaden Upper Laguna Madre to Baffin Bay. Read [email protected] 00:37
179 Mexican shrimping vessels depart Port of Brownsville and Port Isabel as weather calms and Hurricane Ingrid passes
“We safely and successfully provided safe harbor to 179 Mexican shrimping vessels. Now that the weather has calmed down, we’re faced with the equally challenging task of escorting these vessels out of the port,” said Cmdr. Daniel Deptula, the response officer for Coast Guard Sector Corpus Christi. “We will continue working closely with our partners to ensure a safe and efficient transit out to sea.” more@uscgnews 19:22
Abandoned rigs in the Gulf of Mexico
The abandoned rigs question is already getting a first-rate look by the right eyes – researchers at the Gulf of Mexico Institute at the Harte Research Institute in Corpus Christi. That work, which will require four years to complete, is being funded by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. It should be allowed to be finished before far-reaching conclusions are drawn. [email protected]
Commercial Gulf shrimpers in Texas afloat for another season
Greg Seaman, a 49-year-old Palacios native, has managed to stay afloat in a rough business. continued@victoriaadvocate
Brownsville judge saves Texas Red Snapper season
A federal judge in Brownsville has ruled in favor of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) in a joint lawsuit brought by both agencies challenging an emergency regulation enacted by the federal National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). continued
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD)-possible regulation changes-Statewide Recreational and Commercial Fishing Proclamation
AUSTIN – The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) has scheduled three public scoping meetings in January to gather input about possible regulation changes for 2013-14. The scoping items include incorporation of a rule regarding recreational possession limit, clarification of fish harassment rules, bonus red drum tag requirement changes and new possession rules in state waters for aquatic resources in excess of federal limits. Read More
