The annual two-day sport spiny lobster season begins at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday and runs through Thursday evening.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and area law enforcement will be monitoring divers and snorkelers to make sure no rules are broken.
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- In Monroe County, each person can catch up to six lobsters per day. Elsewhere in the state, up to 12 lobsters can be harvested daily.
- A new rule for the 2015 season will allow each person to capture an additional lobster during the two-day season if they harvest ten or more lionfish. The venomous fish are not native to South Florida waters and are an invasive species, but are edible to humans.
- All lobsters must be measured in the water and have a carapace of at least 3 inches to be captured. No egg-bearing female lobsters may be removed from the water.
- Divers are not allowed to harvest lobsters within the borders of John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park during the mini-season. Additionally, is illegal to ever capture lobsters in Everglades National Park, Dry Tortugas National Park, no-take areas of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, and in the Biscayne Bay/Card Sound Lobster Sanctuary.
- Night diving is not allowed during the sport season in Monroe County.
For more information about spiny lobster harvesting in Florida, click here.
The mini-season ends Thursday at 11:59 p.m.
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