snorkeling/collecting in the Keys

[anchor10]

My sons and I are driving from Virginia to the Keys to snorkel and hopefully collect a few specimins. I've found a few (very few) entries on the net about legal collecting in the middle keys. -- My understanding is that you need a fishing license and it's ok as long as you're not in a designated reef like Pennecamp.

I've targeted Marathon Key but not sure if that's the best option. This is a budget trip in mid-June looking for motel/B & B/cottage in the range of 150 per night.

Any suggestions would be great!

[sharkmanstudio]

my wife and i stayed at the key lime sailing club once its in largo.
ist more expensive now than it was then but astill not that much.
its was little bungalows in a womans backyard on the gulf side. she had a canoe that we took to the ocean side in our car and used for snorkeling plus you can cook and bbq there and that saves $. Check out this link and call to get more info


http://www.keylimesailingclub.com/index2.htm

[anchor10]

Thanks... That looks pretty good. Do you know anything about collecting? Is it legal in Key Largo? I assumed everything in that area was off limits.
We'd like to start a tank with Carribean creatures...

[sharkmanstudio]

I think is is legal with a fishing license but you can't take very much stuff you should do a search online for rules

[vtminter]

Look up the rules they aren't hard to find. The few I remember are: No sclerectinians (hard corals), absolutely no live rock. These are just the limits I remember for all florida waters. There is a also a bag limit I believe, but don't remember what it is. I think soft corals are ok, but there are very few types of softies in fl. I think fish and inverts other than hard corals are fair game as long as it isn't a preserve like pennekamp. You will need a fishing license.

Even in a place where it is legal to collect, I wouldn't broadcast that you are doing it. It will cause people to be a pain in the @55 about it.

I don't know how familiar you are with the keys, but the reefs are very far off shore. Unless you have access to a boat you probably won't find coral anyway. To find good spots maybe ask a pet store or dive shop employee they may be able to help, but like I said be cautious who you talk about it around.

The reason I know this is because I have lived in the keys and was also interested in collecting for my aquarium.

[anchor10]

Good advice... We aren't going crazy or anything. We've found a cottage with a boat that takes snorkelers out. I was hoping for a damsel fish or two, some hermit crabs, etc. Maybe a gorgonian or something common.

It would be fun to have stuff I collected instead of someone else.

[vtminter]

That is definitely do-able. Just get the license and make sure you aren't in a park.

[philter4]

The limits are 20 animals (fish and inverts in total) and no more then 6 octocorals and no more then 5 angels. When you get there go to any sporting good store that sells licenses and in the centerfold of the booklet there is a size/bag limit guide, at the bottom it covers all the tropicals, there are a few size limits on some of the tropicals for instance no angels over 8 inch.

Good luck and have fun

[anchor10]

Many Thanks...
Any advice on how to actually catch them?

[crsswift70]

they make slurp guns, but you'll be advertising what you are up to :)
http://www.scuba.com/scuba-gear-251/030848/Trident-Suction-Slurp-Gun.html

[Grunt]

Nets work well also with some practice. Most of the time I let them get close to the rocks, place the net and used my hand to block them into the net. get afew with white or clear netting, not the green. Slurp guns work ok, but I prefer not to use them because they can cause undo stress on alot of fish. Also the end bashed my hands a few times and cut me up, wear gloves. :D

Don't forget to get a battery operated air pump for your bucket.
Looe Key is very nice, no collecting allowed though.

Good luck

[crsswift70]

former 18d by chance?

[baldomero]

good luck on catching those fish ive caught a couple fish in the beach by my house the wrasses are easy to catch but any other fish even damsels are hard to catch i once spent 2 hours trying to catch a french angel with no sucess.

[anchor10]

Well we're back. We went out with a charter boat that took us to "shallow" reefs in the legal collecting area. It was 10-12 feet deep at the shallowest. The only thing that didn't get away from us was a long spined sea urchin! It's in the tank. Looks like scuba is the only way to go.

[baldomero]

its tuff especially in water that deep next time u can try same place and im sure there are fish in 2 to 3 feet of water on the beach.im sure you had fun though.

[mattpenn]

i go once a month to the keys what reef did you go to?i always rent a boat and the reefs i go to you can stand on if you wanted to your not allowed but you can and plenty of things you can take but not live rock or corals pretty much just fish

[anchor10]

We were in marathon, and he took us to Elbow reef. I thought we were going to a patch reef or something else as you described. No such luck.

[streetjudge79]

Best way to collect: Get the clear nets with screen on the bottom, 2 per diver.(They sell these at dive shops) Chase fish into hole ,cover one side with net, use the handle of the other net and insert that into another hole and the fish usually just swim into your first net. I used to collect and sell to fish stores about 18 years ago. It's a lot of fun and fairly easy when you get used to using the nets. Avoid slurp guns, they are worthless.

[anchor10]

did you do this snorkeling or scuba?