Florida’s stone crabbing industry could see a shorter fishing season starting this year if state wildlife officials approve the measure along with other rule changes at their virtual meeting.
Members of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) will vote on the commercial and recreational stone-crabbing modifications soon after they call to order at 9 a.m. Wednesday, July 22, 2020.
FWC commissioners will also cover other items during their two-day meeting, which goes through July 23.
Viewers can also use the channel’s conference line to phone in and provide comments on a first-call, first-serve basis.
No more than two hours of public comment will be dedicated to the subject of stone crabs.
Citrus County’s coast is lined with pockets of crabbing boats, which are allowed to lay traps underwater 10 days before Oct. 15, the start of the seven-month stone crab season.
Citing data showing a 22% (712,000 pounds) decline of harvests from stone crab landings since the late 1990s, FWC staff believe the species is being overfished.
To curtail overfishing impacts, state biologists are proposing FWC commissioners shorten the stone crab season by a month, ending it on April 15.
They’re also recommending escape rings for every trap, an increase in the minimum claw size for harvest and a limit in the number of whole stone crabs.
FWC commissioners already approved a draft of these rule changes in May 2020, when their staff was then suggesting ending the stone crab season on April 9.
If commissioners vote to approve them July 22, these changes go into effect Oct. 1. For information on current stone crabbing rules, visit tinyurl.com/y6au4mo9.
July 21, 2020 at 02:31AM
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FWC to vote on shorter stone crab season, other harvesting rules - Citrus County Chronicle
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