Florida

Catching a state record fish is a significant accomplishment in the life of any angler. The need to have a state agency biologist present to verify the record fish can delay the certification of the fish, possibly leading to changes in the fish’s weight. Few published studies have directly investigated the impact of preservation method on weight change of fish following capture. We examined four fish species: black crappie (Pomoxis nigromacula- tus), bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus), flathead catfish (Pylodictis olivaris),...

Antler-based selective-harvest criteria (SHC) for white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) management is common on public lands throughout the Southeast despite little published literature examining their effects on harvest composition, antlered harvest per unit effort (HPE), and antler scores. Particularly, SHCs may select against larger-antlered males within each age cohort, resulting in smaller antler size of the residual population. We examined the effects of SHC on harvest composition, number of antlered deer harvested per 100 days hunter effort, and antler-scores within age cohorts...