News: Lobster miniseason haul tough to call

Posted on July 25, 2010

Miami Herald
By Susan Cocking
07/25/10

Another lobster miniseason is almost here. `It looks like it's going to be a pretty good season,' veteran lobster diver Mike Maler said.

Lobsters at Haulover Marina are cleaned during lobster miniseason in 2008. This year's lobster miniseason runs from 12:01 a.m. Wednesday through midnight Thursday.
CHRIS CUTRO / FILE PHOTO

Absenteeism is expected to spike at workplaces throughout Florida, as the 2010 edition of the two-day lobster miniseason gets under way later this week.

From 12:01 a.m. Wednesday through midnight Thursday, thousands of scuba divers, snorkelers and bully netters are expected to ply ocean, bay, inlet and canal waters, hoping to become heroes of the barbecue grill and sauté pan.

``It looks like it's going to be a pretty good season,'' said veteran lobster diver Mike Maler, owner of Deli Lane and Sunset Tavern in South Miami. ``I was out a couple weeks ago. They're not everywhere, but the few places that have them have a lot.''

Maler is sponsoring a tournament that will award $500 for the heaviest lobster caught over the two-day miniseason. He will prepare fried lobster chunks for the awards ceremony Friday.

Meanwhile, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Lt. Dave Bingham and fellow federal, city and county marine law enforcement officers will patrol inshore and offshore waters trying to keep boaters and divers safe and prevent the overharvest of one of the state's most valuable marine resources.

``We want to make sure everyone recognizes dive flag rules and regulations -- especially in Broward and Miami-Dade counties,'' Bingham said. ``That's the No. 1 concern.''

Nearly every year, lobster divers are killed or injured by boat strikes. The accidents usually happen because a diver strayed too far from his or her flag, or because a boat sped by too closely. According to state law, boats must stay 100 feet away from a dive flag in an inlet, river or channel, and 300 feet away in open water. Divers are supposed to stay close to the dive flag displayed on their boat, or to tow a dive flag with them if they swim away from the boat or dive from shore.

Another big cause of miniseason accidents is lack of preparation. Would-be lobster hunters who haven't dove in decades take to the water and drown. To get rusty divers ready for miniseason, Reef Ministries -- headed by Tec Clark -- will conduct a daylong ``Revive Your Dive'' seminar Sunday at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Complex, located at 501 Seabreeze Blvd. Dive instructors will conduct refresher courses and inspect scuba gear free of charge.

As for lobster laws, there are no big changes this year. Basically, the same rules apply as in past years, such as:

• A 12-lobster-per-person daily bag limit in most Florida waters, except Monroe County and Biscayne National Park, where the limit is six.

• The lobster's carapace, or head, must measure more than three inches to be legal and must be gauged in the water.

• No spearing or taking egg-bearing females.

• No night diving in the Keys.

• Divers must have a valid Florida saltwater fishing license, plus lobster permit.

• All harvest is prohibited in the Biscayne Bay-Card Sound lobster sanctuary; John Pennekamp State Park; Everglades and Dry Tortugas national parks; and no-take zones in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.

Whether the harvest will be bountiful is anyone's guess. John Hunt, program administrator at the Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute lab in Marathon, said the combined commercial and recreational harvest has fluctuated between four and six million pounds since 2001. He foresees no change in 2010.

``I think miniseason will have a lot of people, and they'll have a lot of fun,'' he said. ``But in terms of what they catch, I don't know.''

Florida gets most of its lobsters from the Keys, but scientists said the larvae originates in the Caribbean and makes its way into Florida Bay, where it settles in the sponge and grass bottom to grow. Over the past decade, that nursery has faced a host of onslaughts, according to lobster scientist Mark Butler of Old Dominion University.

One of the most serious is a virus that Butler and colleague Don Behringer of the University of Florida believe has killed about a quarter of the lobsters in Florida over the past decade. The researchers believe the virus originates with postlarval crustaceans from the Caribbean and spreads among juvenile and adult populations here. Adults that survive might be carriers but show no outward signs of disease. Butler said there is no evidence the virus is harmful to humans who eat lobster.

Another problem is the 2007 die-off of a 30-by-30-mile area of sponge beds -- prime juvenile lobster habitat -- in Florida Bay caused by plankton blooms. A group of volunteers has been working this past week to transplant healthy sponges to make new homes for young lobsters.

Whatever the forecast, hope springs eternal in the hearts of hunters. For those who can't get out of work for this week's unofficial state holiday, they will have another opportunity when the regular harvest season opens Aug. 6.

 

Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/07/25/1745621/lobster-miniseason-haul-tough.html#ixzz0untXoSZY

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