Bear harvest permit applications for the 2025 regulated bear hunting season will open at 10 a.m. EDT on Sept. 12 and can be submitted through Sept. 22 at 11:59 p.m. A bear harvest permit is required to harvest a bear in one of the four selected Bear …
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), in partnership with Wildlife Forever, is proud to announce the opening of the 2025-26 Florida Fish Art Contest! This annual program invites kids in grades K-12 from across Florida to connect with …
PLANT CITY, Fla.—Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced a brand-new Florida Second Amendment Sales Tax Holiday, which will run from Monday, September 8, through Wednesday, December 31, 2025. The Governor also announced several sportsman initiatives …
Photos available The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has successfully completed the first enrollment for the Florida Panther Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) Pilot Program. This initiative rewards private landowners with per- …
Today, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) announced a temporary closure of recreational bay scallop harvest in the Gulf County Zone. This region includes all state waters from the Mexico Beach Canal in Bay County to the westernmost …
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is seeking public feedback from interested parties on proposed rule change concepts relating to outdoor caging, biosecurity, collection and transport of prohibited, live green iguanas. A series of …
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is holding a series of in-person workshops to gather public input on potential rule changes for spotted seatrout. This includes adopting a holistic management approach for spotted seatrout where a …
Florida’s 2025 Gulf private recreational red snapper fall season is open to those fishing from private recreational vessels or state-permitted charter vessels that do not have a federal reef fish permit. State-permitted charter vessels without a federal …
Photos available If you have beach plans for this long holiday weekend, you’re not alone! Sea turtles and shorebirds are still using Florida’s sandy shorelines as important nesting habitat. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is …
The recreational harvest season for snook starts Sept. 1 in all east coast (Southeast, Indian River Lagoon and Northeast) and most west coast (Panhandle, Big Bend, Tampa Bay and Sarasota Bay) management regions. This includes all Florida state and inland …
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is hosting a seatrout symposium on Aug. 27. The all-day event will bring together stakeholders, scientists and fisheries managers for an in-depth look at the spotted seatrout fishery in Florida. …
Photos available The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) will present the draft materials for the Salt Lake Wildlife Management Area 10-year Land Management Plan at a public hearing in Brevard County on Thursday, Sept. 25. The public …
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is asking the public to report sightings of the elusive rainbow snake (Farancia erytrogramma), a nonvenomous species whose population has declined in recent decades. Rainbow snakes are semi- …
In November of 2023, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) Captive Wildlife Investigations received a report of numerous abandoned reptiles found in an Osceola County storage unit. The storage company locked the unit after nonpayment and …
Photos available The 2025 recreational bay scallop season for the Gulf County Zone (including all of St. Joseph Bay) opens Aug. 16 and will remain open through Sept. 24. This region includes all state waters from the Mexico Beach Canal in Bay County to the …
At its August meeting, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved establishing a Bonefish Seasonal Closed Area in Biscayne National Park to help protect bonefish at a recently identified pre-spawning aggregation site. Approved …
At its August meeting, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) proposed a new management framework for commercial and recreational oyster harvest in Apalachicola Bay and updates for rules that will apply statewide. Staff recommend …
Photos available Today, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved revisions to the Florida Burrowing Owl Species Conservation Measures and Permitting Guidelines at its August Commission meeting. The goal of the update is to …
At its August meeting, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved proposed rule changes for lane snapper in Florida’s Gulf state waters to be more consistent with current and pending federal regulations. The proposed …
Today, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and partners announced the final results and winners of the 2025 Florida Python Challenge™. During this year’s 10-day competition, 934 participants from 30 states and Canada helped support …
