Recreational Harvest of the Florida Bay Scallop Pasco County

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Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission Wildlife and Fish Florida heat; add 2 cloves garlic, salt and pepper to taste. Stir for 3 3 for Stir taste. to pepper and salt garlic, cloves 2 add heat;

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tourism@pascocountyfl.net

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water 4 to 10 feet deep where they anchor, put up up put anchor, they where deep feet 10 to 4 water www.visitpasco.net

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FRIED SCALLOPS FRIED

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PASCO COUNTY PASCO

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RECREATIONAL HARVESTING OF THE OF HARVESTING RECREATIONAL

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UF/IFAS Extension Florida Sea Grant Agent Grant Sea Florida Extension UF/IFAS

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EQUIPMENT NEEDED EQUIPMENT Tyler Jones, (Cover), Keith Kolasa, Bryan Fluech, UF/IFAS Fluech, Bryan Kolasa, Keith (Cover), Jones, Tyler Photo Credits: Photo

SCALLOPING PASCO COLLECTING he Florida bay scallop is a bivalve COUNTY’S COAST Scallops may be spotted on or near the bottom of seagrass T mollusk that lives in seagrass beds in beds, usually lying on their ventral shells. Often, they are relatively shallow water, usually 4 to 10 feet Pasco County is the southern extent of harvestable easiest to find in borderline areas where the sand/mud deep. At one time, scallops were reported bay scallop populations. Seagrass beds flourish in the bottom meets the edge of the grasses. Scallops have many coastal waters along this county, providing a habitat neon-blue eyes and may try to swim away when they from as far east as West Palm Beach and as in which scallops thrive. These plentiful seagrass see you, but they do not swim fast or far. Keep collected far west as Pensacola. Today, populations beds, coupled with clear waters, shallow depths, scallops in a mesh bag, rather than in a pocket or in your can only be found in selected locations with and picturesque destinations including Anclote swimsuit. They can pinch! Key Preserve State Park, make Pasco County Though not required, collecting scallops that are at least expansive seagrass beds along Florida’s an ideal place to snorkel for scallops during the 1.5 to two inches in size is seen as a best scalloping practice west coast—principally in St. Joseph Bay, open season. because the scallops are large enough to produce enough the Steinhatchee area of the Big Bend, and Populations of bay scallops, once abundant meat to make cleaning worthwhile. This also gives small near the Crystal and Homosassa Rivers. throughout Florida waters, have fluctuated summer scallops more time to grow and spawn in the fall. throughout the years, and their range has LEGAL REQUIREMENTS Healthy seagrass meadows are essential decreased substantially. To help monitor CARE AND HANDLING for maintaining scallop populations, so their populations and maintain a sustainable In Florida, commercial harvest of bay scallops is banned. When brought to the boat, scallops should be immediately remember to practice responsible boating, breeding population, the Florida Fish and In general, recreational scallopers between the ages of 16 Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and 65 must have a current Florida saltwater fishing license placed on ice in a cooler for the trip to shore unless you and avoid damaging the seagrass beds. annually reviews the status of the scallop to collect scallops. There are some exceptions, listed in the decide to clean the scallops while on the water. Scallops are FWC “Florida Saltwater Recreational Fishing Regulations,” quite sensitive to temperature and will quickly die if they Scallops live about one year before either stock in state waters of the eastern Gulf of Mexico. which is available in bait shops, FWC offices, or on the are not kept cold. Even if kept cold, scallops will usually die dying off naturally or being eaten by humans, FWC website (http://myfwc.com). All non-residents 16 and shortly after being placed on ice, especially if fresh water The boost in scallop populations may be over are required to buy a license unless they are fishing gets into their shells. Placing them on ice, however, makes crabs, octopuses, or a variety of shell- partly a result of a restoration program (scalloping) from a for-hire vessel (guide, charter, party them easier to open, because the muscle holding the shells started by researchers at the University crushing fish. They spawn primarily in the fall. boat) that has a valid vessel license. together relaxes. A scallop, clam, or oyster knife, or even a of South Florida (USF), UF/IFAS Florida After about a two-week period as plankton, teaspoon, can be used to open the shells and cut the white Sea Grant, and FWC through its Fish and Open season in Pasco County in 2018 is July 20-29, and muscle free, discarding the shells and unwanted soft parts. larvae develop a small shell and settle onto Wildlife Research Institute (FWRI) testing the is subject to change in 2019 and future years. Always Although most Floridians only eat the white scallop muscle, feasibility of aquaculture. Because scallops seagrass blades. They continue to grow while consult the FWC website for dates of the season for in many other parts of the world the entire animal is eaten. are “synchronized spawners”—when one attached to the grass blades by a mass of the current year. Harvesting of bay scallops is generally If you do plan to eat the entire scallop, it should be cooked spawns, they all do—hatchery-reared scallops allowed from the west bank of the Mexico Beach Canal (in thoroughly because many open harvest areas for scallops are silk-like filaments called a byssus. They later were placed in cages on bay bottoms where Bay County) to the Pasco-Pinellas county line (near Tarpon not classified for harvest of other shellfish species. fall from the grass blades and become free healthy populations previously existed. This Springs), though open seasons and zone vary. swimmers. Unlike oysters and clams, scallops approach appeared to increase the chance of successfully reproducing over natural scallops The bag limit is 2 gallons of whole scallops (in the shell), are active swimmers. They click their shells that are sparsely distributed. Recent studies by the or 1 pint of scallop meat per person per day. In addition, together, forcing expelled water to propel University of Florida, USF, Mote Marine Laboratory, no more than 10 gallons of whole scallops or 1/2 gallon and FWRI have shown that adult populations of scallop meat may be possessed aboard any vessel them rapidly. Scallops are simultaneous may quickly rebound in some southwest Florida at any time. You may harvest scallops only by hand or hermaphrodites, able to spawn as either locations when late-stage hatchery-reared larvae are with a landing or dip net. Scallopers must remain in the males or females, and very fertile. A single introduced. Future genetic studies are expected to legal scalloping area while in possession of scallops evaluate the long-term effectiveness of using larvae to on the water, including the point where they return to scallop can produce more than one million increase scallop populations. land. See legal requirements about divers-down flags in eggs per spawn. equipment section.