Volume 1, Issue 1 - December 17, 2021

Am I Using Legal Bait or Should I Switch?

Read about commonly asked questions related to the proper use of bait.

There are quite a few regulations that dictate what you can and cannot use as bait while fishing in federal waters or with federally managed species. Many of the regulations aren’t directly related to guidance on the use of species as bait, but do dictate harvest or possession specifications and control how species are treated once they’re on board.

Meet the Council: Bob Gill and Billy Broussard

The Council is pleased to welcome its newest members!

The Gulf Council is comprised of fishermen and other experts in the fishery from states across the Gulf of Mexico. Drawing upon the expertise of these local fishermen ensures that federal fishing regulations are made with direct understanding of, and passion for, our fishery.

Best Scientific Information Available Overview

BSIA stands for “best scientific information available.”

BSIA is a term used often when making important fisheries management decisions, so it’s helpful to define BSIA, summarize how it is determined, and specify who decides what is BSIA.

Most of us take for granted how easy it is to identify the most popular fish in the Gulf because their obvious bright red color is a dead giveaway.

Believe it or not, there are at least 4 other species of snapper in the Gulf that could be mistaken for red snapper. Two of the other red colored snapper species, vermilion and queen snapper, are pretty easy for the average angler to recognize, while two of them, blackfin and silk, are commonly mistaken for red snapper.

Clarifying Common Misunderstandings: Aggregate Bag Limits

Federal fishing regulations aren’t always easy to figure out, especially when you start to dig deeper than size, season, and bag limits.

In this series of articles, we hope to clarify some commonly misunderstood regulations and possibly even shed some light on things you didn’t know you were allowed to do.

Have you ever wondered why regulations like size limits, seasons, and bag limits are set the way they are?

In this series of articles, we’ll explore the logic used to set fishing regulations. We’ll explain why these types of regulations vary by species and explore the factors that are considered when we set them.