According to the press communiqué Gulf red sapper season for recreational fishermen opens June 1 and will closes on July 24. Other regulations for the recreational red snapper fishery such as the two-fish per person daily bag limit, prohibition of the bag limit for captain and crew of for-hire vessels when under charter, and 16-inch total length minimum size limit remain unchanged.
The press release also states that recreational fisheries for other reef fish species are open. These include gag, red grouper, other grouper species with the exceptions of goliath and Nassau grouper, other snappers, and gray triggerfish. Greater amberjack is also open; however, preliminary projections indicate that the fishery may close by late August. Coastal migratory species including king and Spanish mackerel, cobia, and dolphin (mahi mahi) are also open.
Regarding the fishing areas the release said that although the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill has caused a closure of some waters in the northern Gulf to recreational and commercial fishing, most of the federal waters are still open to fishing and all Gulf states have fishing areas that have not been affected by the spill.
