Shore-based shark fishing in Florida will probably evolve even more in the future, but the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission set some big changes in motion on Wednesday during a meeting in Gainesville.
The new rules, effective July 1, include one which says that that anyone who casts for sharks from land, bridges or jetties must get a no-cost permit that includes taking an online educational program. Other rules restrict the practice of chumming the water with fish parts, bones and blood and also require anglers to immediately release any sharks that are on a state prohibited list.
Some of those sharks include the great hammerhead, lemon shark, longfin mako and tiger shark.
The changes are meant to ease public concern about the practice of chumming near shore where beachgoers are swimming. Most experienced land-based anglers know not to chum things up when other people are in the water, but let’s face it: There are still idiots out there.
This article appears in Feb 21-28, 2019.
