FWC CONFORMS IMPORTED REEF FISH SIZE LIMITS TO STATE RULES

November 21, 2002
CONTACT: Lee Schlesinger (850) 487-0554

The Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) today approved rule changes to clarify that imported reef fishes must comply with Florida's legal minimum size limits.  The new rule amendments, which received strong support from recreational, commercial and marine environmental groups, also resolve inconsistencies between state and federal reef fish size limits.

Current rules prohibit possession of snappers, groupers and other reef fish species that do not conform to established size limits.  These rules are enforced for domestically caught fish, however, there has been confusion as to whether these provisions apply to imported reef fishes such as red grouper, yellowtail snapper and red snapper.

The origin of fish is difficult to determine once they arrive at a fish house or retail facility, which may create rule enforcement problems.  Importation of undersized fish also may provide a way for undersized domestic fish to be caught and marketed as imported fish.   Requiring Florida's minimum size limits for both domestic and imported reef fishes will help ensure compliance with legal size limits intended to preserve Florida's reef fish populations.

All imported reef fish that are fresh or frozen and in a whole condition would be affected by the proposed action.  Imported reef fish fillets would not be affected as long as they are clearly identifiable as imports.

In addition, inconsistencies exist between state and federal reef fish size limits, and the proposed rule amendments would resolve them.  On the other hand, certain reef fish size limit rules are different in federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean.  In these cases, the proposed rules would apply the least restrictive size limit for imported reef fish.  For example, there is a 14-inch minimum size limit for red porgy in federal waters of the South Atlantic.  There is no established size limit for red porgy in federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico, so no size limit would be required for the import of red porgy.

The new rules:

• include a listing of minimum size limits for importation of 19 reef fish species
• reduce the minimum size limit of red snapper commercially harvested from Gulf state waters from 16 to 15 inches total length
• reduce the minimum size limit for all harvest of scamp from Gulf state waters from 20 inches to 16 inches total length
• change the term "jewfish" to "goliath grouper" to reflect a change to the common name for this species
• delete the rule designation of red snapper and goliath grouper (formerly jewfish) as protected species (this provision is considered outdated and provides no additional protection for these species)
• reorganize and simplify various reef fish rule provisions
• change rule language regarding possession of mutton snapper, red porgy and amberjack during commercial trips to correspond with federal regulations
• delete a provision pertaining to closure notices for state waters when adjacent federal waters close