Snook season closed on Gulf Coast

Hoping to land that giant Gulf snook? You can still do it - just don't plan on keeping it.

That's because the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission voted Thursday to keep closed the snook season on the west coast of Florida for a year to allow the population to rebound after being decimated by the freezes of January.

Snook season on the state's east coast, where the populations were less affected by the freezes, will open on Sept. 17 and remain open until Dec. 15, the commission ruled.

The snook population along Florida's coastline suffered as much as 50 percent losses during the January freezes. In the Tampa Bay area, there were 11 consecutive days of sub-freezing temperatures, resulting in massive fish kills along the shore.

Commission spokesman Lee Schlesinger said the commission heard from nine members of the public during its hearing in Pensacola. Many were in favor of closing the season until next fall.

State biologists recommended reopening the season on the Gulf Coast for the three months between September and December. But the commission decided against it because the cold on the Gulf Coast did more damage to the snook populations than Florida's east coast, where the fish could find deeper water.

Snook already are heavily regulated. Fishermen can only keep snook that are between 28 and 33 inches long and are only allowed one fish per day. To keep snook, a fisherman has to have a $10 snook license, in addition to the required fishing license.

"The commission was extra precautionary," Schlesinger said. "We have another winter season facing us and the snook are already stressed. So, the fishery will remain closed throughout next spring (on the Gulf Coast), just as a precaution to protect the population."

The closure includes all the coastal waters, tributaries and estuaries south to the Florida Keys, including the Everglades National Park, Schlesinger said.

Steve Betz, who owns and operates Tampa Flats and Bay Charters, said closing it for a year is a great idea.

"I'd like to see it longer, but if that's what they're going to do, it works for me," Betz said. "They are the scientists."

The yearlong closure will allow scientists to better study hard data and then make a determination whether to open it or keep it closed, he said.

"They can make a better decision after a year," Betz said.

Fishermen are still allowed to catch snook and release them, he said.

"We ask that you try to be as careful as you can in handling them," he said.