Fish Rules
7/25/2021

Protecting Coral During Lobster Mini-Season

Video credit BlueGabe

Lobster mini-season is almost here! We’ve grabbed a few helpful things to help inform you more about lobster mini-season and how to take care of corals in the process.

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Coral reefs in southeast Florida are valued at $8.5 billion generating $4.4 billion in local sales, $2 billion in local income and over 70k full and part time jobs.

Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease

Currently, there’s an outbreak of stony coral tissue loss disease throughout Florida’s Coral Reef. We recommend all divers get familiar with the disease and possible causes of transmission to help stem the spread throughout more coral. Here’s a photo gallery of what this disease looks like on various corals. Also, be sure to check out the disease identification cards provided by FWC.

3c73872c2ecc4a12221fc23ca6e5942b.png Some ways to help prevent the spread of this disease include:

  1. Avoid touching corals while diving.
  2. Don’t anchor near corals.
  3. Clean diving gear.
  4. Use environmentally friendly sunscreens.

Get involved with the Florida Coral Crew and learn more on NOAA’s site

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