March 4, 2013

Lake Palestine Joins Ranks of ShareLunker Lakes

ATHENS—Lake Palestine produced its first Toyota ShareLunker March 2, becoming the sixty-fourth public reservoir in Texas to allow an angler to land a 13-pound or larger largemouth bass.

March 1, 2013

Operation Shark Fin targets illegal gill netting and long lines along lower coast

AUSTIN — Operation Shark Fin, a four-day, around-the-clock Texas Parks and Wildlife Department law enforcement effort along the lower coast aimed at disrupting trans-national criminal organizations engaged in illegal commercial fishing and other activities in the Gulf of Mexico, the Rio Grande, and Lake Falcon has resulted in the seizure of 17,500 feet of long lines, two vessels and 15 citations or arrests.

Feb. 28, 2013

Texas White Bass, Other Fisheries Threatened by Drought

ATHENS—Puxatawney Phil may herald the onset of spring for folks in the Northeast, but for Texans there is another signal: The beginning of the annual white bass run upstream from reservoirs into rivers.

Feb. 26, 2013

Dallas Fly Fishers to Offer Classes at Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center March 9

ATHENS — The Dallas Fly Fishers will teach classes for beginning fly-fishers at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens on March 9.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission Mulls Options on Red Snapper Issue

AUSTIN – The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission received a briefing from staff on the state’s red snapper fishery as well as recent action by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council that is likely to shorten this year’s recreational fishing season in federal waters.

Feb. 20, 2013

Little Lake Does Not Always Mean Little Fish

ATHENS—The Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center’s main stocked fishing pond, Lake Zebco, covers only about an acre and a half. (A full football field including end zones covers 1.32 acres.) Walking at a brisk pace, you can circle it in three or four minutes.

Feb. 19, 2013

ShareLunker Bite Heats Up: Lake O’ the Pines, Toledo Bend, Lake Fork

ATHENS—Toyota ShareLunker entries came from three East Texas reservoirs within the last week.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission to Meet on Red Snapper Issue

AUSTIN – The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission will hold a special meeting in Austin on Feb. 26 to discuss recent events and options involving the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery.

Feb. 18, 2013

Deep Yet Silent No Longer: Texas Artificial Reefs Launch New Website, Facebook Page

For more than thirty years, the Texas Artificial Reef program has generally run silent and deep – deep in its positive impact on marine ecosystems, recreational fishing and diving and coastal economies, silent because it’s probably largely unknown to most people. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department scientists hope that will change soon with a major website overhaul and new Facebook page.

Feb. 11, 2013

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Stunned by Gulf Council Snapper Vote

AUSTIN – In a stunning move Feb. 8, the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council voted to recommend an emergency rule that could shorten the recreational red snapper fishing season in federal waters off the Texas coast to as little as 11 days from the planned 27 day season.