Recreational bottom fishers in the Gulf of Mexico will have to rethink fishing strategies starting November 1. Red snapper season closes for family-level anglers in both state and federal waters and won’t re-open until mid April, 2006.

Add the recently imposed federal ban on red grouper in U.S. waters and bottom pickin’s been impacted, although some of the pain has now been lessened by a new court order overturning most of the federal interim rule. See the Coastal Conservation Association Florida news release in the conservation section of the FS Fishing Forum.

Seems this year Gulf anglers were dealt tricks instead of treats. Both fisheries were closed to help rebuild stocks, although many question the

data used by fishery managers to order the closings.

The feds closed Gulf grouper because of a “reported” 1-year catch spike in 2004, the same year four hurricanes hit Florida. Many recreational anglers also question the snapper closings, citing that red snapper are abundant throughout the reef systems.