Recreational harvest of gag grouper in federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico will close on October 19th

Recreational harvest of gag grouper in federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico will close on October 19th.

 

The closure is happening to help protect the gag grouper population.

 

Interim measures to reduce overfishing of gag grouper stated that the recreational season would begin on September 1st, and end on November 10th, unless NOAA Fisheries projects that the gag recreational annual catch limit would be met before that date.

 

Projections of recreational catch and effort data indicate the recreational Gulf gag annual catch limit of just under 404 thousand pounds gutted weight will be reached on October 19th. 

 

Preliminary reports indicate high catch rates of gag grouper this year, in part because of changes in the season start from June 1 to September 1. 

 

During the recreational closure, the bag and possession limit is zero for gag in or from federal waters of the Gulf.

 

The prohibition on possession of Gulf gag also applies in Gulf state waters for a vessel issued a valid federal charter vessel/headboat permit for Gulf reef fish.

 

Gag recreational harvest will be closed until the 2024 fishing season opens.    

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