collecting from the ocean?

[fish are good]

hello i am going on vacation to the Florida keys and i have heard of people collecting their own live stock. i know that you have to have a license but anyway i am just curious if anyone oh here has done this and if so what is it and pictures are appreciated!!!!!!!!
thanks Jake

 

[teresaq]

no, you can not take live rock.

 

[fish are good]

yea i know that but i am talking about livestock... fish and stuff??

 

[teresaq]

ok, I miss read stock for rock
check here
http://www.myfwc.com/RULESANDREGS/Sa...harvestmls.htm
I have caught pipe fish, ghost shrimp, and a few other things, (returned them to the water)
I have only brought home snails.
I may give pipes a try shortly, but need a tank for them
T

 

[fish are good]

thanks a ton TeresaQ... anyone care to share a story????

 

[fish are good]

bump..................??

 

[aquaknight]

As per the link to FWC, as long as you follow the guidelines, buy the non-resident SW fishing license, you can collect. What are you looking to get? To be 100% honest, there's not as much as you think. For example all stony coral (all LPS and SPS) are off limits to collect. There are a number of damsels, wrasses, 2 species of tangs, and about 3-5 types of angels, with a few others. They are not very easy to collect if you don't know how to.
The second, and perhaps larger issue is where you're going. Most of the Keys are part of a marine sanctuary, and/or parts of State/County/National Parks, all of which are off limits to collect. You will need to research where are planning to go, to make sure you're not inside protected boundaries.
I have collected tangs, angels, a baby snapper, a few wrasses, gorgonians, and some sponges.

 

[fish are good]

lol wow i didnt realize that it was that complicated ... maybe i will just look at them for now lol and in 2 yeard when i live in florida ill do this stuff then lol ... i still want to hear peoples stories lol

 

[tur4k]

I'm pretty sure that most of the places that I've gone diving in the Keys were Marine Sanctuary's. You also need to be careful about what you touch. Grabbing a hold of something like fire coral is generally a bad idea.
I've never tried to collect anything. A lot of the fish that you see are too big for most of our tanks. There are a lot of barracuda, various rays, nurse sharks... I'm not saying that you won't see anything suitable, but unfortunately I can't fit an eight foot spotted eagle ray in my 90G.

 

[tur4k]

When are you coming to Florida? My LFS is getting ready to stop selling Natural Sea Water because of the oil spill. I don't know how much if any of the oil has reached the Keys, but it's something to keep in mind.

 

[fish are good]

yea i really hope the oil doesn't effect my vacation lol that will suck lol im going august 29 through September 5

 

[mr.clownfish]

u guys who live around warmer waters are SOOOOOO lucky!!! it has been my dream for several years to collect stuff from the ocean and place them in my tank!

 

[fish are good]

um Mr. Clownfish... dont you live in Cali??? and yea they are soooo lucky ... i live in nebraska I would still like to hear some stories!!!!!!!!!!! lol

 

[tur4k]

The ocean is cold along California.