A
team of university and government scientists has been selected to
conduct an independent study to estimate the number of red snapper in
the U.S. waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
The
research team, made up of 21 scientists from 12 universities
including the University of Florida, a state agency and a federal
agency, was awarded $9.5 million in federal funds for the
project.
With
matching funds from the universities, the project will total $12
million.
Recreational
anglers and commercial fishers will be invited to play a key role in
collecting data by tagging fish, reporting tags and working directly
with scientists onboard their vessels.
Some
stakeholder groups have expressed concerns that there are more red
snapper in the Gulf than currently accounted for in the stock
assessment which is requiring stricter fishing limits than they
believe are needed.
The
two year project is designed to give the most comprehensive view of
Gulf Red Snapper abundance and distribution yet on artificial,
natural and unknown bottom habitat across the northern Gulf of
Mexico..
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