FWC Report

During the week of March 29 through April 4, Officers Lipford and Gerber were on patrol in Gulf County and checking wild turkey hunters when they observed one individual hunting within 100 yards of a game feeding station with bait present. The individual was issued the appropriate citation.

During the week of April 5 through 11, Officer Hartzog was on patrol at Patton Drive in Eastpoint and observed an individual fishing from a paddleboard on the south side of the Eastpoint channel. Hartzog observed the individual exit the paddleboard and begin harvesting large clusters of wild oysters from the channel’s edge and putting them on the bow of his paddleboard. The subject paddled back across the channel and when the officer approached to conduct a resource inspection, the subject began discarding the wild oysters back into the water. Hartzog instructed the individual to stop discarding the oysters and then detained the individual and advised he had observed him harvesting unculled wild oysters from a prohibited area. Additionally, the Apalachicola Bay system is closed to recreational and commercial oyster harvest per executive order. The subject also did not possess a current saltwater fishing license or any safety equipment on his paddleboard. The violations were cited accordingly. During the week of April 12 through 18, Officer J. Will, Regional Bear Biologist C. Spencer and Northwest Regional Director J. Creamer represented the FWC at the Franklin County “Cops and Kids” event. They spoke about the duties of biologists and law enforcement officers and answered questions about wildlife. They interacted with approximately 600 students and staff at the event.