Regulations, effective June 1, for snook, redfish and spotted seatrout in SW Florida
Starting Tuesday, June 1, the following regulation changes for the harest of snook, redfish, and spotted seatrout will take place in southwest Florida:
Pasco County and Tampa Bay:
•Normal regulations will resume for snook, redfish and spotted seatrout in all state waters in Pasco County and Tampa Bay north of State Road 64 in Manatee County plus the Braden River and its tributaries.
Sarasota Bay through Gordon Pass in Collier County:
•Snook and redfish will remain catch-and-release through May 31, 2022.
•Normal regulations for recreational spotted seatrout harvest will resume with the addition of a six-fish recreational vessel limit. Commercial harvest will also resume, but harvest will be held to the recreational three-fish bag and six-fish vessel limits.
•These regulations are for all state waters south of State Road 64 in Manatee County, including Palma Sola Bay, through Gordon Pass in Collier County but not including the Braden River or any tributaries of the Manatee River.
As a reminder, under normal regulations, snook will open to harvest on Sept. 1.
Seatrout will be under new, more restrictive regulations that took effect in 2020, including a recreational size limit of 15-to-19 inches total length, a one seatrout over 19 inches per vessel allowed limit, a daily commercial limit of 50 per harvester, and a zero captain and crew bag limit when on a for-hire trip. The daily bag limit for spotted seatrout will be five fish from Pasco County through Fred Howard Park Causeway in Pinellas County near the Pasco County line, and it will be three fish south of the Fred Howard Park Causeway on the Gulf coast.
The current catch-and-release measures for snook, redfish and spotted seatrout in all waters from Pasco County through Gordon Pass in Collier County remain in effect through May 31, 2021.
These temporary catch-and-release measures were put into place in this area after these fisheries were impacted by a 2017-2019 severe red tide.
Learn more about regulations for these species here: myfwc.com/fishing/saltwater/recreational.