Does anyone know the collection laws in the Keys? I know some of the reefs are very protected, but what about other areas down there? Making a trip right after Christmas and was wondering what the laws were? Free stuff is always great!:yes:

dont do it

I agree with Victor. I have a supplier down there and they have to get a ton of permits plus inspections to make sure the law is followed.

I'm also curious what the collection laws are. For example is sand protected? What about rock?

sand you dont want that crap

Protected I believe you arent even allowed to touch the reefs there. For example SCUBA divers arent allowed to wear gloves because when we wear gloves we want to touch things. Exact law not sure but I would assume its a no no!

I have a house down in the Keys in Marathon. The land rights to my house extend out 100 feet from my dock into the water. However I cannot touch ANYTHING living that is not a fish that I have a permit to catch. The other issue you will hit is that the water in the keys looks all pretty and nice but you have to realize that the THOUSANDS of boats put some pretty nasty crap into the water (pollutants, gas, other petroleum products) and this is stuff you just DO NOT want in your tank. Not to mention the live rock you get will have some NASTY hitch hikers. Oh yeah and did I mention that when I am down there I have only been out diving/lobstering ONCE that the coast guard/Sheriffs didnt come up on to my boat, check my permits and look to make sure I didnt have more lobster than my quota and I have been out probably 40-50 times (They are all over the place in the area I go). THEY DO NOT SCREW AROUND DOWN THERE!!!! In summary its a felony to collect it. It is a felony to transport it across state lines (dept of agriculture) and if you get caught then it is not worth the maybe hundred dollars it would save you. Now what you can do is buy base rock down there at places like home depot because they use it for decorating yards and what not. Haha heck my yard there is made entirely of crushed coral. You can get stuff like that for SUPER cheap and then when you get back just put the LR in a tank with some established LR and let it seed it. IMO its not worth it because of the legal ramifications and the risk of the nasty crap you can bring back on the rock or in the sand.

Protected I believe you arent even allowed to touch the reefs there. For example SCUBA divers arent allowed to wear gloves because when we wear gloves we want to touch things. Exact law not sure but I would assume its a no no!

You are not allowed to touch the corals but you can wear gloves.......I always wear gloves when I dive and when I collect lobster. I have come up wearing gloves many times right in front of the sheriffs with a bag full of lobster and have never had anyone says a word to me. Ive also come up off of reefs with gloves on and they just "check to make sure everything is ok" and then are on their way.

I have a house down in the Keys in Marathon....

I vote that the next ARC monthly meeting be held at YOUR place.

:D

agreed......the laws against collecting there are extremely rigid and I wouldn't risk it....there are major, major fines for violation...I know a guy who got his boat taken away for collecting some ricordea illegally...his fish store in miami was also shut down....of course, I am sure there is a big difference in fine between taking 1 and taking 100 but t still wont be worth your savings.....the fish stores in Miami are pretty cheap compared to here and your best bet to save some buck is to go to them and buy stuff there and bring it back up with you.....I've done it on my last two trips down.

Also like dawgude said, base rock however you can find almost anywhere.....on your drive down through US1 they are doing construction and there is a ton of loose rock that they have torn up....you can pick up base rock on the side of almost any road in the keys.

what kind of nasty crap are we talking about here in the sand and on the rocks in the keys.....still a little confused about that? I was thinking of going to the bahamas on my freind's boat when I move back down to miami and getting some sand and LR from there......not from the reefs but from the beaches and the rock from outside the protected reef areas....in the bahamas, as long as you are collecting from non-protected areas it's all good. but i dont want nasty crap in he tank if that's a risk?

You are not allowed to touch the corals but you can wear gloves.......I always wear gloves when I dive and when I collect lobster. I have come up wearing gloves many times right in front of the sheriffs with a bag full of lobster and have never had anyone says a word to me. Ive also come up off of reefs with gloves on and they just "check to make sure everything is ok" and then are on their way.Really? My dive instructor told me that it was illegal...or maybe he said some boat charters dont allow it. Either way no touching, no taking from the beach.

I need 50lbs of base rock wanna grab me some Dawg!

Closed Areas: The harvest of these species is generally allowed wherever recreational fishing is allowed. However, the harvest of marine life species or the use of the gear allowed to take these species may be limited or prohibited in state or federal parks, national wildlife refuges, and portions of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. Interested persons should contact those park areas for further information.
It says only portions? Go to this site and it looks like you can???
http://myfwc.com/marine/recreational/recharvestmls.htm

I will grab some base rock for whoever wants it! Im heading down for new years

Next time I drive down there I plan on picking up a few hundred lbs of base rock from a guy down there and bringing it back. Just dont know when the next time I will be down there since its a 14 hour drive.....

Closed Areas: The harvest of these species is generally allowed wherever recreational fishing is allowed. However, the harvest of marine life species or the use of the gear allowed to take these species may be limited or prohibited in state or federal parks, national wildlife refuges, and portions of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. Interested persons should contact those park areas for further information.
It says only portions? Go to this site and it looks like you can???
http://myfwc.com/marine/recreational/recharvestmls.htm

Here is the problem with this.....Live rock is stated as being banned right below that part and any area where there are any corals or something like that you would want is going to be a sanctuary. The corals down there are ok but nothing amazing.

I will grab some base rock for whoever wants it! Im heading down for new yearsI might take you up on that :D

I was born and raised in Florida, and I can tell you that anything live taken out of the ocean will send you staight to jail along with a hefty fine. Florida is very strict and wouldn't even attempt it. I have also been lobstering many times in Fl and the police are insane. All the police for lobster, just think about a piece of coral.

While I was there earlier in the year, a couple guys got arrested for hoisting up 500lbs of rock but several companies were still pulling fish off the reef. My understanding is many of them lease protected areas from some of the conversations I was having with the locals. I personally was supremely disappointed in the state of reefs off of Key West, but there are still supposed to be some great spots off Key Largo.

Be cautious taking base rock also. The burden of proof is on you to prove it was not harvested from the ocean, should you get caught. Furthermore, rock that is dug up by machinery or has been exposed to road traffic will surely be coated in a lot of toxic material.

Be cautious taking base rock also. The burden of proof is on you to prove it was not harvested from the ocean, should you get caught. Furthermore, rock that is dug up by machinery or has been exposed to road traffic will surely be coated in a lot of toxic material.

Certainly if you bought it at home depot you would have a receipt.

I know when my son went with his girlfriend, they were tempted but it was clear to everyone - Do it and go to jail! I always tell my kids, "If everyone took just one, there would be no more." Just buy what you need. Then you know it is relatively safe for your tank, and you did not contribute to the extinction of damage of yet one more species. Just MHO