fbpx
Bonefish & Tarpon Trust

BTT Accomplishments

With the support of our members, partner organizations, and corporate sponsors, BTT has….

  • Worked with Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and anglers to implement catch-and-release-only regulations for tarpon and bonefish.
  • Created the first-ever permit-tagging program in Florida, Belize and Mexico, and improved permit fishing regulations in Florida.
  • Mapped critical flats fishing areas in the Florida Keys that are helping to guide management strategies of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and Everglades National Park.
  • Conducted bonefish studies in Florida, the Bahamas, Mexico, Belize and Cuba that are being used to develop habitat and fisheries protections.
  • Launched a collaborative Juvenile Tarpon Habitat Initiative to identify, protect and restore juvenile tarpon habitat.
  • Launched the largest study ever undertaken in bonefish reproductive science—a project designed to develop new tools for bonefish restoration.
  • Launched the “Fix Our Water” campaign to inform and engage anglers in Florida’s ongoing water management crisis.
  • Worked with the state of Florida and governments of other countries throughout the Caribbean to protect multi-billion dollar recreational fisheries.
  • Assisted in establishing six nationally protected bonefish conservation zones in the Bahamas.

BTT’s objective is to protect and enhance critical flats habitats, reverse the decline of flats species, and use research findings to influence policy, educate the fishing community and improve resource management for long-term stewardship. BTT has many ongoing and completed research projects and initiatives that have achieved significant results in our efforts to learn about, protect and restore bonefish, tarpon and permit fisheries and habitats. Very little was known about the three species when BTT was founded, and scientific results from our efforts are critical to informing fisheries management and educating the public.

BTT has funded and conducted projects that have provided information essential for conservation and led to a number of tangible conservation outcomes. 

 

Bonefish


Tarpon

Research of catch and release impacts on tarpon showed that tarpon >40” are more susceptible to handling.


Permit

Working with FWC, we improved regulations for permit in Florida.


General