Of all the fish species found in Florida waters, the majority have no specific fishing regulations and are deemed “unregulated” species. This includes several species caught by commercial and/or recreational anglers, such as white grunt, ladyfish, pinfish, and jack crevalle.
Over the past several years, recreational fishing guides in the Florida Keys have noticed an alarming decline in jack crevalle catches, but since jack crevalle are unregulated, we know very little about their biology and ecology or how best to protect them. Researchers in the Coastal Fisheries Research Lab at Florida International University are using acoustic telemetry to learn about adult jack crevalle movement and migration patterns. Knowing when and where fish move is crucial information needed to develop the right management plan.
Since January 2019, we have tagged 72 jack crevalle throughout South Florida and 7 jacks in Mobile Bay, AL with help from collaborators at Mississippi State University. Because of the extensive iTAG and FACT acoustic receiver networks, we have been able to learn amazing things about jack crevalle movement! These fish move much greater distances than we originally anticipated, with several fish migrating from Fort Lauderdale on the East coast around the Keys and up the Gulf coast to Tampa Bay. These findings tell us that jack management will need to be a collaborative effort among several counties, and possibly the entire state.
To learn more about our jack crevalle project and other research projects our lab is working on, check out our website at http://myweb.fiu.edu/rehagej/ and follow us on Instagram @fiu_fisheries_lab.
