Final Report: Development of a Bonefish Conservation Program in South Florida

Ault, Jerald; Humston, Robert; Larkin, Michael; Luo, Jiangang

Executive Summary: The bonefish (Albula vulpes) is one of the most spectacular game fish in terms of speed and fighting power. They occur worldwide in warm subtropical and tropical coastal waters from the nearshore extremely shallow "flats" environments through offshore coral reefs. South Florida and the Florida Keys are widely regarded as the birthplace of "flats" fishing where many of the most effective angling techniques were originally developed, especially flats fly rod fishing (Brown 1993, Sosin 2000). The Florida Keys fishery for bonefish is world renown. Since the 1950s the region has offered the greatest potential for encountering large bonefish (> 30" TL and 12 lbs), and now accounts for more than half of the world records for bonefish listed by the International Game Fish Association (IGF A 2002). The Florida State Legislature currently promotes Florida as the "Fishing Capital of the World", particularly for prized game fish like bonefish and tarpon (State of the State, Florida 2001). South Florida fisheries alone represent an $8 billion dollar annual economy (Johns et al. 2001). However, the status of the Florida bonefish stock is not known and fishery impacts have never been adequately evaluated. Concomitantly, Florida's marine fisheries are undergoing extensive changes due to rapidly growing regional human population sizes and recreational fishing fleets, increased exploitation effects, and environmental changes. It appears that the great interest in bonefish angling helps to fuel the explosive recreational fishing fleet growth seen in Biscayne Bay and the Florida Keys. An urgent concern voiced by experienced fishermen is that the Florida fishery for bonefish may be declining. These opinions are supported by direct and anecdotal evidence of severe system changes. Such concerns are magnified by the fact that overfishing is decimating other popular fisheries in the Florida Keys (Ault et al. 1998, 2001ab). To address these issues the goal of the University of Miami bonefish conservation program is to develop a technically sound systems methodology for improving the assessment and management of the bonefish fishery in south Florida. The pilot program was initiated in cooperation with professional guides, anglers, and leaders from Florida's angling industries who felt that better understanding of the stock and its dynamics was paramount in protecting the future of this valuable resource. Under sponsorship of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and Bonefish Tarpon Unlimited, the program had the following objectives:....