Big Changes in Store for Florida Redfish Anglers

Big Changes in Store for Florida Redfish Anglers

By Bob McNally

Source: sportfishingmag

7/28/2022

Credit: Bob McNally

Florida has a long and very involved history managing its popular and highly regarded red drum (redfish) fishery.

Over the last 40 years, the state has gone from almost no redfish regulations to strict lock-downs halting all harvest when commercial netting nearly wiped out brood stock redfish in the early 1990s. Regulations today are in-between those extremes. But state management is changing to keep pace with Florida’s ever-growing population and environmental issues.

Now Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has set Sept. 1 as the beginning date for a whole new, much larger and detailed plan for guiding anglers targeting reds.

The tripling of the state’s coastal management areas along Florida’s waters from three to nine zones is one of the most telling oversight changes coming Sept. 1.