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March-April, 2011

Volume 53, Number 2

Good News: Sarasota Bay Seagrass Continues to Expand!

The increase over the past few years in Sarasota Bay is part of a

longer term trend showing significant seagrass recovery. The current level of 12,692 acres is the

highest level reported and is 25 percent above 1950. In 1998, the total acreage of seagrasses in

Sarasota Bay was 8,650.

According to Mark Alderson, the Director of Sarasota Bay Estuary Program, the recent findings

are encouraging. "The additional acreage since 2008 is modest, but the overall trend continues

to indicate significant progress," he said. "Sarasota Bay had a little more than 10,000 acres of

seagrass in 1950. The increase in the total number of acreage is meaningful given the rapid

growth of the region during the past 50 years.

Seagrass is an important feature of estuaries and a good barometer of the Bay's health.

Seagrass growth depends on relatively clear water in order for light to reach the Bay floor

where various species of seagrass grow. Seagrass also provides vital habitat for various fish

species including sea trout, snook and redfish.

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Sarasota Bay gained 51 acres of new seagrass between 2008 and

2010 according to scientists with the Southwest Florida Water

Management District. The effort to map seagrass acreage is

managed by the District's Surface Water Improvement and

Management Program SWIM!. This group uses aerialphotographs and field research to estimate the acreage of

seagrass in five Gulf Coast estuaries including Sarasota Bay.

1 303 1 7th Street A'cat

Valmctto, FL 3422 l

941! 722-4524

F' AX 94] ! 721-6608F.-mail: jsmarh1clai'ufl.cdu

N' 1l "ll'. I' i S c 't'ai r a 11 t. 0 r g

National Deep Water Fish Release Workshop

Recent closures of several Gulf reef fish fisheries e.g., red snapper and grouper! have focused attention

on the importance of successful release survival! of fish caught in deeper water. These fish are

particularly susceptible to mortality from barotrauma, the bloat and internal organ damage caused by

pressure change. If discard mortality can be reduced, there is hope that the severity of closures and bag

limits could be lessened, thereby reducing the economic impact on recreational angling and charter boat

industries.

Scientists and fisheries managers at a recently convened March 2011! National Deep Water Fish

Release Workshop reported results from the West Coast that document that the survival of these fish

can be significantly increased using a variety of methods that quickly return the fish to depth while

minimizing injury. Research shows high survival rates for rockfish commercially and recreationally

important West Coast species! in depths up to 300 feet.

Participants concluded the best methods for ensuring survival entail using a recompression technique

that safely returns the fish to depths, minimizing injury. Recompression is the preferred option. Venting

fish can also be a useful method to return fish to depth. Evidence has shown that it can be helpful for

some species, but the research for many other species is either lacking or inconclusive.

All participants agreed that more research is needed and outreach efforts to teach anglers how to best

ensure the survival of these fish caught from deeper water should be expanded. Florida Sea Grant

extension agents will be working with anglers across the state to see what methods will work best in our

local conditions.

Example of One New Release Technique

Red snapper placed in "cage" ready tobe lowered over the side. Fish can

swim out the bottom when it has been

sufficiently recompressed.

Open bottom "fish cage" � actually amodified West Coast crab trap

Deep water fish release continued:

For a complete summary of the National Deep Water Fish Release Workshop go to

htt: www.fishsmart.or

To view an amazing video of a fish being decompressed and more useful information on catch and

release fishing, go to this Florida Sea Grant website: htt: catchandrelease.or

Turner Maritime Challenge Program

New Youth Program in Cortez

The Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage FISH! working with

the Florida Maritime Museum at Cortez has received a grant

from the Estate of Jay K. Turner to establish and operate a

youth maritime program.

Jay Turner visualized a youth maritime program that would

provide personal growth and self awareness to its participants

by exposing them to conditions that would call upon and

develop their inner strengths, self-reliance, and

interdependence with those other participants in the program.

As a result of his generous bequest the Turner Maritime

Challenge Program has been established.

Restored traditional sail boats along theCortez shoreline FISH!

An introductory course, "Seas the Day", will be offered to students in the middle school age group. This

course will include the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, FWC!, Boating Safety Course.

Florida Law requires that persons under the age of 21 must complete an approved boater safety course

prior to operating a vessel powered by a motor of 10 horsepower or more.

In addition to the material covered in the FWC course, students will be introduced to the diverse

facilities of the FISH and Maritime Museum at Cortez. They will be shown the workings of the boat shop

and learn how to identify the tools, equipment, and materials used there. They will be taught how to

paddle a canoe and a kayak, row a rowing boat, and operate a powerboat. They will also be introduced

to the art of sailing.

At the completion of the course and after a successful completion of an exam, students will receive a

Boater Safety Identification Card from FWC and a certificate of completion from this program.

The next course, "Guardians of the Fleet" will focus on the actual hands-on building, restoration, and

maintenance of our fleet of vessels. They will now learn how to put to use the tools and materials taught

in the first course.

While learning about local maritime traditions, students will be instructed in traditional seamanship and

craftsmanship. An appreciation for the coastal ecosystems will be emphasized by opportunities to

explore the waters surrounding Cortez.

In addition to the shop work, students will be instructed in the proper handling, launching, and hauling a

boat. They will be taught how to safely operate a variety of traditional vessels in all weather conditions.

They will also be given the opportunity to experience commercial fishing on a first-hand basis.

As students become more capable and comfortable, the program will offer more sophisticated

experiences with our natural world and maritime heritage. Extended outings on larger vessels will

require greater understandings of the natural and manmade forces. Overnight excursions to Egmont Key

will lead to extended voyages to other Gulf Coast destinations like Cayo Costa and Cedar Key.

It is hoped that by exploring our coastline and learning our

maritime heritage, students will gain respect for themselves,

for others, and the environment.

The program is offered at a charge of 5100 per level.

Students must pass a swimming competency test.

Turner Maritime Challenge Program

Location: 4523 123rd St. Ct. West, Cortez, Florida 34215

Phone 941-792-8200View from the shoreline: remains of

net camps used to dry and storetraditional cotton nets FisH!

Email Director: Jaime Canfield

Mailing Address: P.O. Box 606 Cortez, Florida 34215

Tracking 10,000 tarpon � Sooner than you think

Word is spreading of the need for anglers to take DNA samples from every tarpon they catch. If

participation in the Tarpon Genetic Recapture Study continues to grow among anglers from Florida and

throughout the southeast, researchers will reach their goal of tracking more than 10,000 tarpon well

ahead of schedule. Awareness of the study is on the rise, as evidenced by the more than 2,000 DNA

samples anglers have submitted each of the past two years. This level of sampling, if sustained, can

provide unprecedented information that could result in record-

breaking numbers of recaptures tarpon that were caught and

previously sampled for DNA!.

Using its unique DNA fingerprint, while state-of-the-art, is a simple

way for anglers anywhere to genetically tag a tarpon. Genetic

tagging allows researchers to track the movements of a fish days or

even years later, since its DNA does not change. In the past,

researchers and anglers used a different approach that wasn' t

nearly as effective or long-lasting.

Researchers from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation

Commission's FWC! Fish and Wildlife Research Institute and its

partner, the Mote Marine Laboratory, documented more than 6,500 tarpon DNA samples submitted by

volunteer anglers through June 2010. By the end of 2009, biologists determined that 37 of those

samples came from recaptured fish. The calculated recapture rate at that time was 0.8/o, which means

roughly one out of 100 genetically tagged tarpon was recaptured. Twenty of those 37 recaptured tarpon

spent a relatively short time between less than one day and three months! at large after they were first

caught and sampled. However, other recaptured tarpon were at large as long as one or two years before

being caught and sampled again. Processing of samples collected in 2010 is still in progress, so

researchers anticipate that the rate of documented recaptures will increase as more samples are

processed.

Early results indicate that the study will provide information on the range, seasonal movement patterns,

and long-term movements of adult tarpon. Researchers are using the volunteer-collected tarpon DNA

samples to determine which locations tarpon return to every year. They will also evaluate the data long-

term to see if there are links between juvenile tarpon tarpon smaller than 24 inches or under 25

pounds! found in nursery grounds and the adult tarpon swimming in major Florida fishing grounds. With

continued sampling efforts by anglers on all tarpon they catch, biologists may one day find that a

juvenile tarpon sampled in Florida in 2007 is the same fish caught and sampled again as an adult in 2015.

The big question is: where do these tarpon come from? Your sampling efforts may show us that some of

the juvenile fish actually stay in Florida or return to state waters to become part of the adult fishery.

While we don't know this yet for certain, using DNA to track tarpon of all sizes can lead us to those

answers.

Scrape � when ynu read scrape, it means ~sera ei

Anglers, please use a little "elbow grease" when scraping the outer, hard surfaces of the tarpon's jaw to

collect your sample. Slime does not provide us with DNA. The goal is to obtain a sample that turns a

scrub pad silver or white. Silver or white indicate s

that adequate DNA has been removed and that

scientists will be able to uniquely identify your

tarpon. Without a good scrape your sample may

not be usable, and we will not be able to determine

if you have captured a previously sampled fish.

Keep on scraping!

This study does not exist without you, the anglers,

acting as citizen scientists collecting the data. We

have you to thank, so keep on scraping and great

job everyone!

Use a maroon sponge and scrape until you seesilver.

To receive a free tarpon DNA sampling kit and kit refills, call toll-free: 1-800-367-4461; e-mail:

TarponGenetics@MyFWC.corn; or visit one of the more than 180 participating locations statewide

where you can also drop off your samples.

For a listing of tarpon-related information, including distribution and collection center locations, visit

http: //research.myfwc.corn/tarpon/ and select "Tarpon Genetics."

Florida Sea Grant Extension Agent Newsletter Contributors

John Stevely, Manatee, Hillsborough, Sarasota counties:

Bryan Fluech, Collier County: fl h fl d

More information on the Florida Sea Grant College Program can be found at: Florida Sea Grant

Share this newsletter with friends and colleagues! They can also subscribe by emailing me,

Sinpereiy;

Jolln SlevelySea Grant L'@tension Agent