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CONSERVING HABITAT AT SCALE

BONEFISH A publication of

& TARPON

TRACKING PERMIT

ADDRESSING SHARK DEPREDATION

JOURNAL CONSERVATION THROUGH SCIENCE • FALL 2026

Features

16 Beyond the Bite

BTT’s Florida Keys Shark Depredation Project and support for the SHARKED Act are advancing collaborative, science-based solutions to help anglers and sharks coexist within a healthy flats fishery. Michael Adno

22 For Love of the Flats

At the 15th Annual NYC Dinner & Awards Ceremony, BTT will honor former NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke and Gretchen Burke for their commitment to rebuilding Grand Bahama’s legendary East End following Hurricane Dorian. Monte Burke

32 Restoring Nature’s Network

BTT has invested decades studying where flats fish live throughout their life cycles. Now, across Florida, The Bahamas, and Mexico, the organization is scaling up habitat restoration fivefold, making each project part of the coastal habitat mosaic. Alexandra Marvar

44 The Art of Letting Go

BTT is launching an expanded bonefish catch-and-release education program in The Bahamas, building on the guidelines developed decades ago by the Flamingo Cay Rod & Gun Club and the science-based best practices established by BTT and its partners. T. Edward Nickens

Bonefish & Tarpon Trust, in partnership with the Bahamas Ministry of Works and Family Island Affairs, recently restored Grand Bahama Island’s West Gap

old logging Photo: Preston Knowles O N E Fhad I S been H & blocked T A R P ObyN anJ O UR N A L road FA Lfor L 2decades. 026 2 Creek,B which

Updates & Reports Setting the Hook....................................................................... 6 Welcome Aboard...................................................................... 8 Tippets....................................................................................10 Charting the Way Forward.......................................................12 The Secret Lives of Permit....................................................... 26 Exploring the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary........... 38 Conservation Captain Q&A: Michael Peralta........................... 42 2027 Artist of the Year: Harley Bartlett................................... 48 BTT Events.............................................................................. 50 Tom Davidson Joins IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame....................... 52 Last Cast................................................................................ 56 B O N E F I S H & T A R P O N J O U R N A L FA L L 2 0 2 6

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Setting the Hook From the Chairman and the President

here are many important moments in the life of an organization, but none more so than when an organization scales to deliver transformative impact. We borrow these words from an article on Bonefish & Tarpon Trust’s new five-year strategy that appears in this issue of the Bonefish & Tarpon Journal. For nearly three decades, BTT has moved methodically through a series of research initiatives designed to build our knowledge of flats species and habitats and to inform fishery conservation. Along the way, we’ve also notched important conservation wins in fishery management and completed pilot projects in habitat restoration. This knowledge and experience now provide the foundation for the most ambitious phase of work ever envisioned at BTT—an effort calibrated to deliver greater mission impact in the conservation of species, water, and habitat in Florida and regionally. The 2030 Plan is framed as a science-based organizational response commensurate with the complex challenges facing the flats fishery—and one that will scale further over time. Among the highlights, BTT will advance 15 habitat restoration projects and protect nine pre-spawning aggregation (PSA) sites in Florida and The Bahamas by 2030. Additionally, our scientists will complete the important task of mapping, prioritizing, and assessing all essential flats habitats in Florida, The Bahamas, and Belize to guide future conservation action. This work will be done through holistic and collaborative approaches, all rooted in spatial management and guided by science. To support these priorities, BTT will secure significantly larger public and private investments to fund the design, permitting, and implementation of restoration projects. At the same time, we will promote science-based approaches in public policy aimed at improving water quality in Florida, conserving critical habitats, and strengthening flats fisheries management regionally. We will also continue to support reform of the menhaden fishery and science-based responses to shark depredation. Implementation of this sweeping new plan has already begun. BTT and partners fully restored West Gap Creek on Grand Bahama’s North Shore in April, and restoration at August Creek on Grand Bahama’s East End will commence in the fall. These are the first two habitat restoration projects to be counted toward BTT’s goal of 15. In Florida, BTT has completed the engineering design and permitting at Rookery Bay, a project near Naples that now awaits groundbreaking. Four more habitat sites in Charlotte County, Florida, all upstream from Boca Grande, will follow soon. You can read more about BTT’s 2030 Plan in the article that follows. Also watch for frequent updates on our progress in the months to come. Within these pages, you’ll also find compelling articles that take a deep dive into the core elements of the Plan, including “Restoring Nature’s Network” by National Geographic contributor Alexandra Marvar, who covers BTT’s efforts to restore important tidal creek systems in The Bahamas in partnership with the Bahamas Ministry of Works and Family Island Affairs. Marvar also details BTT’s ambitious plans to restore natural flows to degraded habitats in Southwest Florida—work that will benefit juvenile

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Evan Carruthers, Chairman

Jim McDuffie, President

tarpon and snook as well as bolster coastal resilience for local communities. As always, science will continue to guide BTT’s efforts. One of the important research topics that will unfold over the fiveyear period is shark depredation. In his piece, “Beyond the Bite,” New York Times contributor Michael Adno takes a look at BTT’s innovative Florida Keys Shark Depredation Project, which is studying shark-angler interactions by location, season, and fishing method. The results will help inform future management decisions, including ways to reduce shark-angler interactions and limit impacts to the valuable flats fishery. Across the Gulf, another prime example of BTT’s science in action can be seen in Belize and Mexico, where BTT has launched a new permit tagging study. In his piece, “The Secret Lives of Permit,” award-winning wildlife journalist Chester Moore offers a fascinating glimpse into the innerworkings of the study, which is utilizing acoustic telemetry and the expertise of local fishing guides to uncover the movements and habitat use of the region’s permit—information critical to conserving the fishery. BTT’s remarkable progress and ambitious plans for the future all grow from the vision and leadership of Tom Davidson, BTT’s founder who was inducted into the International Game Fish Association’s Fishing Hall of Fame on August 29. The transformative steps that BTT is taking in the 2030 Plan would not have been possible without Tom’s tireless service as Founding Chair for nearly two decades. Learn more about Davidson’s inspiring legacy and BTT’s founding on page 52 of this issue. As BTT begins an exciting new chapter marked by significant growth and impact, we thank you, as always, for your support of our organization and advocacy on behalf of bonefish, tarpon, and permit, their habitats, and the larger fisheries they comprise.

Restored West Gap Creek, Grand Bahama. Photo: Preston Knowles

Photo: Dr. Aaron Adams, BTT

It Goes Both Ways

When we support healthy fisheries, healthy fisheries support all of us. Thank you, BTT.

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Welcome Aboard

Craig, Johnson, Dowd Join BTT Team

Valerie Craig

Will Johnson

Dr. Sally Dowd

Bonefish & Tarpon Trust welcomes Valerie Craig as Chief Operating Officer, Will Johnson as Chief Development Officer, and Dr. Sally Dowd as a Postdoctoral Associate. Craig has worked in the conservation field for more than 20 years, designing and leading science-based programs to deliver measurable impact. Among her affiliations, Craig worked for more than a decade at National Geographic Society in progressively senior roles supporting science, innovation, and impact. As a consultant, she provided support and counsel to executive teams at The Conservation Fund and Ocean Conservancy. Throughout her career, she has earned a reputation for leading teams across diverse disciplines, strategy development and deployments, and operation effectiveness. “I’m thrilled to join Bonefish & Tarpon Trust as it enters an ambitious new period of growth and impact,” said Craig. “I look forward to working with the team, board, members, and partners to build the capacity and systems needed to extend impact for the communities and habitats that depend on healthy fisheries.” Craig earned the B.A. in International Relations at the University of CaliforniaDavis and the M.E.M. in Environmental Management from the Yale School of the

Environment. She is a past board member and former chair of Ocean Outcomes and the Lindblad National Geographic Grant Fund. Johnson is a lifelong conservationist and sportsman whose career has been defined by a singular conviction: that protecting wild places is both a moral obligation and a lasting legacy. He arrives at BTT after spending nearly two decades with Ducks Unlimited in roles of increasing responsibility across the Southeast— ultimately serving as Managing Director of Development for a five-state region spanning Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, and Virginia. “I’ve spent my career at the intersection of conservation and the people who invest in it, and I’ve never been more energized than I am right now,” said Johnson. “BTT is doing work that is urgent, science-driven, and irreplaceable—protecting the species and the habitats that define flats fishing across the Southeast, the Gulf, and the Caribbean. The opportunity to help build the resources and relationships that will carry that mission forward is one I don’t take lightly. The best days for bonefish, tarpon, permit, and coastal ecosystem conservation are still ahead of us, and I look forward to doing my part to help get us there.” A 2005 graduate of the University of

South Carolina, where he earned dual degrees in finance and marketing, Johnson is a Ducks Unlimited Diamond Life Sponsor, a Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow, and an Emeritus Member of the Board of Advisors for the F3 Foundation. Dr. Dowd joins the staff of BTT’s Florida Keys Initiative as a Postdoctoral Associate. She received her Ph.D. in Ecology from the Institute of Marine Sciences at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and earned the B.A. with honors in Molecular Environmental Biology from the University of California-Berkeley. During her academic career, Dowd served as an NSFREU Summer Student Fellow at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, a Research Technician at the University of North Carolina Institute of Marine Sciences, and a Coral Reef Ecological Processes Intern at Mote Marine Laboratory. Over the next two years, her work will focus on shark depredation and mitigation tactics. “Valerie, Will, and Sally join the BTT team at a truly transformative moment in our organizational history,” said BTT President and CEO Jim McDuffie. “Their leadership, experience, and commitment to the mission will help us achieve the ambitious goals we’ve set for flats fishery conservation over the next five years.”

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SCAN ME

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Tippets

Short Takes on Important Topics guides, and community partners on Grand Bahama Island to plant 4,000 mangroves as part of its Bahamas Mangrove Restoration Project. Since the project’s inception in 2019, BTT has planted 150,000 mangroves in Abaco and Grand Bahama while also supporting Bahamas Mangrove Alliance partners in planting more than 640,000 overall. Mangrove ecosystems are vital to The Bahamas, providing habitat for bonefish and countless other marine species, protecting shorelines from storms and erosion, and strengthening the resilience of coastal communities to environmental challenges. What began as a goal to restore damaged habitats in Grand Bahama and Abaco has grown into one of the country’s largest community-based restoration initiatives, helping to safeguard the future of The Bahamas’ world-renowned flats fishery while supporting broader conservation and climate resilience goals.

A tarpon landed in Virginia. Photo: Kendall Osborne

TARPON BECOME PROTECTED IN VIRGINIA Strengthening protections for tarpon in coastal U.S. states along their Gulf and Atlantic migratory routes is central to BTT’s science-based conservation strategy. BTT and its members voiced their support for important new protections in Virginia earlier this year. The Virginia Marine Resources Commission adopted new regulations to make tarpon catch-and-release only and prohibit their removal from the water. Tarpon were previously unregulated in Virginia, which now joins Florida and North Carolina in prohibiting their harvest. This is a significant step toward conserving the Silver King and supporting a strong recreational fishing economy, not only in Virginia but throughout the Mid-Atlantic states along tarpon’s migratory route. As the seasonal range of tarpon continues to expand along the Atlantic Coast, consistent protections across their migratory corridor will help ensure healthy populations for future generations of anglers.

BTT staff, partners, fishing guides, and volunteers plant mangroves on Grand Bahama. Photo: Paul King/Free Fly

BAHAMAS MANGROVE RESTORATION PROJECT NEARS 1 MILLION GOAL In celebration of World Oceans Day on June 8, Bonefish & Tarpon Trust brought together volunteers, students, fishing 10

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Gulf menhaden boats use a giant purse seine to catch the forage fish. Photo: Benson Chiles

BTT ADVOCATES FOR MENHADEN REFORM Ecosystems on the Gulf and Atlantic coasts are losing their foundation: the vast schools of menhaden that are essential prey for migrating tarpon and many other species. Menhaden stocks aren’t limitless, but they’re harvested as if they were. BTT continues to advocate for science-based reform of the commercial fishery, and we’re making progress. In Louisiana, three newly passed laws will improve menhaden management and industry accountability in the Gulf. These new laws increase fines for nearshore fishing violations, enhance vessel-tracking capabilities, and publicize menhaden harvest reports to improve fishery oversight. On the Atlantic Coast, overharvest remains an urgent problem that is being inadequately addressed by fisheries managers. A recent stock assessment found that the Atlantic menhaden population was overestimated by more than 30 percent. Scientific modeling indicates that a 50 percent reduction in harvest is necessary to maintain the population’s reproductive capacity, but the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission implemented only a 20 percent reduction for 2026. BTT will continue to work with our conservation partner organizations to advocate for improved management of the menhaden fishery for balanced ecosystems and sustainable harvest.

across their fishing careers. The results suggest the Florida Keys experienced peak tarpon fishing in the mid-to-late 1990s, followed by a long-term decline in both catch-rates and the size of fish reported through 2025. The survey’s findings provide an important baseline for tracking the health of the fishery and guiding future conservation efforts. Learn more and explore the full survey results by scanning the QR code.

A permit lost to a shark in Vero Beach, Florida. Photo: Mark Yanno

SHARKED ACT WILL ADDRESS DEPREDATION BTT continues to advocate for passage of the Supporting the Health of Aquatic systems through Research, Knowledge and Enhanced Dialogue (SHARKED) Act. The bipartisan bill unanimously passed the US House of Representatives, and is pending a final vote in the Senate. The bill would establish a task force to research and address shark depredation (the full or partial removal of a hooked fish by a shark before it is landed) by convening members of the fisheries management community and researchers with expertise in shark ecology to develop mitigation strategies. BTT thanks Senators Rick Scott (R-FL) and Brian Schatz (D-HI) for co-sponsoring the bipartisan SHARKED Act in the Senate. Learn more at: BTT.org/Sharked-Act.

The Silver King. Photo: Greg Dini

TARPON SURVEY RESULTS REVEAL FISHERY TRENDS How healthy is the Florida Keys tarpon fishery today compared with decades past? A new survey by BTT and research partners tapped the collective memories of more than 100 anglers and guides to help answer that question. Using a novel “Best Catch Assessment” approach, participants reported their best days for tarpon eats, hookups, and fish size

A school of tarpon. Photo: Dr. Aaron Adams

BTT ISSUES STATEMENT ON THE USE OF FORWARDFACING SONAR IN EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK Bonefish & Tarpon Trust is dedicated to science-based conservation and the long-term sustainability of saltwater fisheries, including those within Everglades National Park. As emerging technologies reshape how anglers interact with marine resources, it is important to evaluate their impacts through the lens of fish behavior, ecosystem dynamics, and cumulative stress on our fisheries. Forward-facing sonar is a way to increase angler efficiency (catching more fish per day) by enabling real-time detection and tracking of individual fish, including those that are not actively feeding and not visible at the surface. While BTT has not conducted direct studies on the effects of this technology on tarpon, existing research and ecological understanding provide significant context. BTT-supported research has shown that sharks frequently associate with tarpon aggregations, particularly during peak seasonal periods. When a tarpon is hooked by an angler, it becomes more vulnerable due to fatigue and impaired movement, increasing the likelihood of shark depredation. Similar dynamics have been observed in bonefish schools. Technologies that increase angler-tarpon encounters and catchrates can therefore be expected to increase the frequency of shark depredation events. Forward-facing sonar also has the potential to eliminate natural refuges that have historically limited fishing pressure. Tarpon holding deep or remaining inactive—behaviors that previously reduced their exposure to anglers—can now be detected and targeted. This is a fundamental shift in the balance between fish behavior and angling pressure, comparable to now prohibited practices in Boca Grande, Florida, that targeted nonfeeding tarpon with jigs used for snagging. Scan the QR code to continue reading. B O N E F I S H & T A R P O N J O U R N A L FA L L 2 0 2 6

Charting The Way Forward BTT’s bold new five-year strategic plan reflects its commitment to healthy fisheries and resilient ecosystems and the anglers, local communities, and coastal stakeholders who rely on them.

Guide Brent Darville poles an angler in search of bonefish in the Berry Islands. Photo: Joe Klementovich

here are important moments in the life of every organization, from the laying of a mission cornerstone to the early wins that galvanize the commitment to a cause. But none is greater than the moment when an organization takes the leap to pursue its mission at scale. That transformative moment for BTT is now! Earlier this year, the BTT Board of Directors approved a sweeping new five-year plan that both expands and accelerates mission impact. At the center of the 2030 Plan is a simple idea: conservation must happen at a much larger scale to counter the pace at which flats fisheries and habitats are being threatened. Over recent decades, Florida has lost millions of acres of wetlands and seagrasses, and more than 50% of its mangrove cover. At the same time, altered hydrology in multiple locations has compromised water quality and natural flow. Taken together, these losses continue to trigger serious impacts to fisheries in Florida. Elsewhere across the region, such threats don’t exist at the same scale in The Bahamas, Belize, and Mexico, yet they are on the rise. “BTT has made great progress in the past 10 years,” said President and CEO Jim McDuffie. “We’ve applied our research to improve fisheries management and to restore and conserve critical habitats. But any angler can see that the challenges we’re facing aren’t slowing down in any way. They’re coming at us in ways faster and more complex than ever. Our response must be

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strategic and appropriately scaled to succeed.” The 2030 Plan was developed during a year-long planning process involving staff, board members, and consultants. The result is a blueprint for complex problem-solving and conservation in a dynamic environment. Over the next five years, BTT will lead a landscape-scale approach to habitat protection and restoration, which will include the regional mapping, prioritization, and assessment of all essential flats habitats in Florida, The Bahamas, and Belize. “This is a holistic approach, rooted in spatial management, that aligns science, policy, and community priorities in conservation,” said McDuffie. “And it will scale over time, beginning with our restoration of a minimum of 15 sites in Florida and The Bahamas by 2030.” The comprehensive mapping of priority habitats will be completed by the end of next year and their assessment for conservation action by the end of 2028. In the meantime, restoration of several sites is already underway. The first of these, West Gap Creek on Grand Bahama’s North Shore, was completed in April 2026, and groundbreaking on the second, August Creek on Grand Bahama’s East End, will follow this fall. In Florida, design and permitting is also complete for a major restoration project at Rookery Bay in Collier County, and engineering design is set to begin on four more in Charlotte County over the next 12 months.

BTT, in partnership with the Bahamas Ministry of Works and Family Island Affairs, will remove the decades-old causeway obstructing August Creek’s natural tidal flow. Photo: Rashad Cartwright

At the same time, BTT remains focused on securing robust, sustained funding for Everglades restoration, which is essential to the long-term health of Florida’s iconic fisheries. With partners, BTT is advocating to secure state and federal funding to complete the EAA reservoir and related Everglades restoration projects. BTT is also championing investments in critical habitats across the state, with emphasis on Southwest Florida, the Indian River Lagoon, Biscayne Bay, and the Florida Panhandle—regions that are vital to the state’s sportfish populations, and the coastal economies that depend on healthy waters. Major priorities in the 2030 Plan will require new laws, regulations, and public investments in conservation. To this end, BTT will pursue initiatives aimed at improving water quality and wastewater treatment in Florida, reforming menhaden fishery

From a policy perspective in Florida, BTT will work toward securing approval of innovative wastewater technology, sustained funding to implement it, and modernized treatment standards—all to address emerging contaminants that threaten coastal fisheries and ecosystem health. “This policy work is grounded in two innovative studies funded by BTT that discovered alarming levels of pharmaceutical contaminants in Florida’s bonefish and redfish,” said Ralston. “The results of these studies underscored the urgent need for BTT to pursue wastewater treatment reform that is backed by science.” It’s been said there’s no mission without money! So, it follows that any organization spearheading complex conservation efforts at an ever-expanding scale must also itself scale for growth and meaningful impact. BTT will secure $175 million in total conservation capital over the next five years to support the 2030 Plan—a 500% increase over total funding in the previous five-year period. This will include private funds to make restoration projects “shovel-ready” along with a minimum of $100 million in public funding to support the implementation of restoration plans and support clean water initiatives. “This is an important moment in our mission and a very exciting one for our organization,” said McDuffie. “The work we’ve completed over the years in research, the successful pilot projects in habitat restoration, the credibility that we’ve earned with governments, and the deep engagement we enjoy with stakeholders across the region all combine now to position BTT for success—and enable us to deliver!”

A bonefish pre-spawning aggregation (PSA) in The Bahamas. Photo: Robbie Roemer

management regionally, protecting flats species pre-spawning aggregations (PSAs) in Florida and The Bahamas, and supporting additional improvements to the management of flats species and habitats. “Securing these lasting conservation outcomes will require translating our science into enforceable policy that safeguards bonefish, tarpon, and permit,” said Kellie Ralston, BTT Vice President for Conservation and Public Policy. “We can apply the wealth of data we’ve gathered on the movements, spawning, and habitat use of these species to inform improved management in a number of ways, including protections for tarpon in Louisiana, and for bonefish, tarpon, and permit in Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula. Along these same lines, BTT will seek protections of essential habitats in Belize and The Bahamas that we have identified as priority habitats for flats species.”

Permit at Florida’s Western Dry Rocks spawning site that BTT advocated to protect. Photo: Capt. Tommy Robinson caption B O N E F I S H & T A R P O N J O U R N A L FA L L 2 0 2 6

Planned giving techniques can help you save taxes, benefit your family, and help ensure a healthy future for bonefish, tarpon, permit, and their habitat. To learn more, go to

BTT.org/Legacy or contact BTT Director of Development Mark Rehbein at mark@bonefishtarpontrust.org 14

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beyond the bite

BTT’s Florida Keys Shark Depredation Project and support for the SHARKED Act are advancing collaborative, science-based solutions to help anglers and sharks coexist within a healthy flats fishery.

BY MICHAEL ADNO

n the late 1930s just south of Stuart, Florida, anglers left Port Salerno each morning from Manatee Pocket, headed toward the Gulf Stream in search of something they believed was endless. With nets, long lines, and kill gaffs, they raised shark after shark from the current. Once the fish were boatside, they were hauled aboard by cranes and pulleys and killed before being offloaded into mills where their oil was harvested. Their fins were sent abroad, and their skin transformed into leather. That cottage industry, once central to South Florida, continued from the 1940s until the 1990s when shark populations were deemed at risk. In 1993, the first Atlantic Shark Fishery Management Plan took root under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, spurring three decades of research. But still today, there remains a deep well to explore regarding the health of shark fisheries, shark behavior, and why anglers in Florida have reported an exponential rise in shark depredation over the last decade.

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In April 1936, one of the first recorded cases of shark depredation appeared in a piece published in Esquire magazine. Ernest Hemingway described an angler who after lashing a marlin to the side of his boat fought back a barrage of sharks, “clubbing them, stabbing at them, lunging at them with an oar until he was exhausted and the sharks had eaten all they could hold.” That same year, Hemingway was fishing near Bimini for bluefin tuna. He watched helplessly as one fish after another was lost to sharks. Soon after, Hemingway developed heavier conventional tackle, hoping to reduce the length of the fight and the number of sharks they fed in The Bahamas. For a time, it worked. In recent years, though, guides from Boca Grande through Chokoloskee and down to Key West have only seen sharks grow more tenacious in targeting hooked tarpon, snook, and redfish. In 2010, 17 years after the shark management plan, Captain Aaron Snell noticed the bull sharks following his skiff in the Lower Keys. At that point, Snell had been guiding for over a decade,

A lemon shark. Photo: Robbie Roemer

and suddenly, in certain basins or channels, “if you hooked a drastic change.” He described the same behavior as Snell, where fish, there was a shark on it,” he said. It changed the calculus sharks would linger along the edge of a flat, presumably waiting of guides, who then noticed how two or three sharks might for a fish to be hooked or released. He started to wonder if the be waiting 100 yards away like puppies in some places. Snell sharks were learning that the boat meant something. The seasons noticed that it was most often bull sharks that tended to follow came and went, but year after year, Fordyce noticed more the boat in hopes of eating a hooked tarpon. “As soon as the peculiar behavior. He often watched as boats running baitwells fish left the water,” Snell said, “those sharks were beelining in arrived in a ditch to pitch pilchards underneath the mangroves. towards that sound.” Today, he sees fewer bull sharks and notices Quickly, a lemon shark, known as a highly residential species, more tiger sharks in the Lower Keys, but what’s strange is that appeared and, when given the chance, ate the snook or redfish he sees fewer depredation instances now than he did a decade the anglers hooked. “I think this has just become a learned ago. It’s made him wonder whether that’s a reflection of shark behavior,” Fordyce told me. “They know what these boats are behavior or possibly the declining number of migratory tarpon doing. It’s a way for them to make a living.” that arrive each spring between Big Pine and the Marquesas. This continued, but not just in the backcountry with snook Up towards Islamorada, Captain Rob Fordyce, another and redfish. Fordyce noticed sharks in basins where tarpon held longtime guide, started to notice some fish here and there being early in the season, those spots where they rested ahead of big lost to sharks around a decade ago, largely near Flamingo in flood tides. “That fish jumps one time,” he said, “and all of a Everglades NationalBTT Park. But then sixresource years ago, he saw “a to conservesudden, around youPhoto: neverJess saw.” The is working with managers in Belize essentialthere’s habitat 30 for sharks bonefish, tarpon,you andthat permit. McGlothlin B O N E F I S H & T A R P O N J O U R N A L FA L L 2 0 2 6

A bull shark eats a hooked tarpon. Photo: Capt. Brett Hagood

Each shark in the study is tagged with an acoustic transmitter that is surgically implanted in the shark’s abdomen. Photo: Dylan Schmitz

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same was true for Fordyce out on the wrecks and in the wake of shrimp boats. He described how as soon as his boat arrived, sharks appeared, waiting for an easy snack. Across three different zones—out back, on the oceanside, and offshore—Fordyce saw that same pattern among three different species: lemon, bull, and whaler sharks. Just this year, Bonefish & Tarpon Trust (BTT) partnered with Fordyce on his new television series, The Seahunter Unleashed, in which Fordyce and guests will target sharks, tag them for BTT’s Florida Keys Shark Depredation Project, and reveal what they find to viewers. The new relationship with sharks has changed the way Fordyce guides, because as he explained, once the sharks find him, “I won’t just sit there and keep feeding sharks.” So naturally, he wondered what’s causing this uptick in depredation across South Florida? Dr. Ross Boucek, BTT’s Florida Keys Initiative Director, has been asking the same question for the past two years in his work for BTT’s Shark Depredation Project, which seeks to identify which fisheries are most vulnerable, ascertain where the most fish are being depredated by sharks, and develop science-based solutions. Dr. Boucek and his colleagues turned first to the cause, discerning whether this is a behavioral shift, like some fishing guides have observed, or something else. The broad-stroke theory for the increase in shark depredation reported by guides and anglers is that shark protections established three decades ago have led to a vast recovery of sharks, hence the bump in angler-shark interactions. But the theory proves difficult to confirm since many shark species have never received a stock assessment, let alone consistent ones, so that theory is primarily based on anecdotal evidence gleaned from guides’ observations. As Dr. Boucek told me, “We don’t know,” but of course, he was inclined to believe the guides who serve as a weathervane for the health of a fishery. In places like Bahia Honda, Boca Grande, or the islands near the ramp in Flamingo that see lots of traffic, there’s an outsized number of sharks gathering around prey, but a critical factor here is that there’s been an exponential increase in fishing and boating traffic in Florida, especially since Covid, leading to an increase in angler-shark interactions. What’s even more complicated is that to address shark depredation in each fishery, Dr. Boucek believes you need a case-by-case basis for management. What will work in the Everglades, or for one species, won’t necessarily work in another location or fishery. This year, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) did begin a stock assessment of sandbar sharks, spurred on by public sentiment, and plans to do another of bull sharks come 2028. But as some guides in Florida told Dr. Boucek, “There’s not going to be any place to fish in the Park anymore if we go any slower.” The slow pace of adaptive management here reflects a web of agencies and overlapping public lands and waters between state and federal regulators, and it’s precisely why organizations like Bonefish & Tarpon Trust exist to both fill the gaps but also keep things moving. Dr. Boucek explained to me that BTT’s Shark Depredation Project collected diet data from sharks, within the Flamingo area of the Everglades and Florida Keys, because BTT wants to truly understand what percent of prey species compose sharks’ diets. What was surprising is that only a small subset, 23% of sharks in hot zones for depredation, have gamefish in their diet while the other sharks primarily fed on forage species like pinfish or ladyfish. From the dataset BTT scientists assembled with guides like Fordyce and others, they saw four general groups of behavior. Boucek explained that 15% of the sharks that are most active at important depredation areas, and moved very little from their depredation hotspots, were twice as likely to engage with

BTT researchers measure and tag a lemon shark for BTT’s Florida Keys Shark Depredation Project. Photo: Dylan Schmitz

anglers and four times as likely to be eating snook compared to the other behavioral groups. What Boucek could see then is that this isn’t a full-scale behavioral shift among all sharks but rather, like Fordyce’s theory, a learned behavior that may only apply to a relatively small number of sharks. As Boucek said, shark depredation is one of the most urgent conflicts between humans and wildlife, a threat that counters the progress we’ve made in fisheries management regarding

The tracks of four sharks tagged by BTT show three moving around hotspots and one ranging more widely.

tarpon, permit, and bonefish, as well as snook and redfish. That concern animated what ultimately became the SHARKED Act, a bill supported by BTT and partner organizations that is currently in the Senate and intended to establish a federal task force to study shark populations, depredation, and develop solutions. The name, a long acronym, stands for “supporting the health of aquatic systems through research, knowledge, and enhanced dialogue,” and is sponsored by Hawaii Senator Brain Schatz and Florida Senator Rick Scott. At the time of this writing, whether or not the bill reaches a vote by the close of summer 2026 is unclear. But in April of this year, NOAA held a public workshop to begin assessing different ways to address shark depredation, leading to a new stock assessment of sandbar sharks that were deemed overfished eight years ago. Dr. John Carlson, a Research Fish Biologist at NOAA, told me, “The goal is to improve fishing opportunities for anglers.” Those current and future assessments are part of recently funded studies by NOAA to better understand the range of shark deterrent technologies and identify how to monitor shark depredation either through surveys or mobile reporting. When I asked Dr. Carlson whether the agency kept records regarding depredation, he pointed me toward available data regarding dolphin and shark interactions with commercial and recreational fisheries and a cache of literature stretching back a century, but ultimately the extent of depredation is unknown, and the reasons why are, too. When I asked Jessica McCawley, the director of Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Division of Marine B O N E F I S H & T A R P O N J O U R N A L FA L L 2 0 2 6

Fisheries Management, she immediately pointed to the absence of any standardized reporting process for the Gulf and the Atlantic. She pointed to a string of surveys going back five years, including one where 60% of respondents reported depredation encounters. As to whether there was any clear shift that the agency could find in all the data they collected from reports, biologists, and surveys, McCawley told me, “Research suggests some [individual] sharks may learn to associate fishing activity, vessel presence, or gear with feeding opportunities.” She noted that the population and concentration of recreational anglers based in South Florida complicated their efforts “to attribute observed trends in behavior or interactions to any single factor.” For the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, they hope to see more awareness of the angler’s role in the interactions and more importantly a sense of what practices can reduce depredation events. As McCawley told me, “It is important for anglers to understand that shark depredation is not a new phenomenon and occurs in both commercial and recreational fisheries in the Eastern United States and globally.” She understands how frustrating the costs can be for guides, commercial fisheries,

and recreational anglers, but added, “Sharks play a critical role as apex predators in maintaining healthy and balanced marine ecosystems, and FWC does not want sharks to be viewed as a nuisance species.” It’s clear when you speak to guides and anglers about sharks how they see our relationship to the natural world. Some consider it a relationship that we control, manage, and regulate, while others understand that this is one thread in an elaborate web of relationships we’re still trying to trace. Capt. Snell thinks that it comes down to education regarding the target species, which for most of the Keys is tarpon, but also a sense of respect. “The people that love feeding tarpon to the sharks don’t understand their life cycle, how long they live, how long it takes for them to sexually mature,” he said. “Fishermen need to know. So maybe it is an education thing.” Michael Adno has worked for The New York Times, The New Yorker, and The Bitter Southerner, where his profile of Ernest Mickler, the author of White Trash Cooking, won a James Beard Award. Last year, his writing was anthologized in The Best American Science and Nature Writing.

A shark eats a hooked redfish in South Carolina’s Lowcountry. Photo: Robert Wiggers

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FOR THE LOVE OF THE FLATS At the 15th Annual NYC Dinner & Awards Ceremony, BTT will honor former NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke and Gretchen Burke for their commitment to rebuilding Grand Bahama’s legendary East End following Hurricane Dorian. BY MONTE BURKE

hen asked about a favorite individual moment while fishing the saltwater flats, Steve and Gretchen Burke both share the same story, albeit from different viewpoints. A few years ago, the Burkes (no relation to me, but I’m open to adoption!), who have been married for 43 years, were in Coopers Town, Abaco, fishing with guides on different boats. Gretchen was on an inside flat, within view of the big church in town. It’s a place known for its plentiful schools of hungry, but not very big, bonefish. At around 2 PM that day, Gretchen’s guide noticed something else on the flat. “He saw a fish following the muds caused by his push pole,” says Gretchen. “It turned out to be an old, very hungry permit.” She cast to it, hooked it and landed it. Her guide took a picture of her holding it. It was the first permit Gretchen had ever made a cast to. Moments later, on the other boat, Steve heard a ping on his phone. He looked down. “And there was Gretchen holding a 25-pound permit,” he says. “I was like, ‘did she catch that on a live crab or something?’ She’d never even been permit fishing. But, no, she caught it on a fly. And it was way bigger than any I’d ever caught.” “Yeah, that was pretty memorable,” says Gretchen. She’s maintained bragging rights for five years going. 22

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*** Steve and Gretchen Burke, who will be honored at Bonefish & Tarpon Trust’s 15th Annual NYC Dinner in early October, met at Colgate University, where they both graduated Phi Beta Kappa. Gretchen went to work for Manufacturers Hanover. She later got her M.B.A from Harvard Business School and then worked for Pacific Security. Steve also went to Harvard Business School—he went straight from Colgate—after a momentary flirtation with divinity school. The couple wed in 1983. After a brief stint at General Foods, Steve was hired by The Walt Disney Company in 1986, launching what would become an illustrious career in media. After coming up with the idea for Disney Stores and, later, working as the president of Euro Disney, Steve was named the president of ABC Broadcasting (where his father had been a long time—and legendary—executive). In 1998, Steve was hired by Comcast to become president of the cable division, a move that surprised some because it took him out of the centralized, high-pressure New York City media scene and down to decidedly quieter Philadelphia. But he thrived there, building Comcast into what was then the largest cable company in the country.

Anglers fish along the edge of a flat in Grand Bahama. Photo: Paul King/Free Fly

He was eventually promoted to the chief operating officer of Comcast and then, in January 2011, became the CEO of NBCUniversal after Comcast bought the company. He would stay in that role—running television networks (in news, sports, and entertainment) and television stations, theme parks, and a major motion picture studio—until 2019, when he stepped aside to become chairman. At the end of 2020, he retired. Throughout his career, Burke was known for his level-headedness under the immense pressures of the cutthroat media business, his competitiveness (he ran marathons and triathlons) and for his understatement and lack of attention-seeking. He now serves on the boards of Berkshire Hathaway and J.P. Morgan Chase. Gretchen left banking and finance when the couple had children (they have five). She has since played a fundamental role in raising money for Colgate and the Episcopal Academy and has served on the boards of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Philadelphia Zoo, among other places. *** I interviewed the Burkes while they were in Key West, one of their favorite places to fish. They had just come in after a day on

the flats. Steve had caught a small tarpon and bonefish early on in the day. “I tried for a grand slam, but couldn’t find a permit,” he says. On her boat, Gretchen had landed a bonefish. “And then I had a shot at a 130-pound tarpon,” she says. “You’re lucky I didn’t hook him, because I would have missed this interview.” I asked the Burkes, both 67, about their introduction to fly-fishing. For Steve, it happened 30 years ago when he was on a pack trip in Wyoming. “After the second day, I was like, ‘I can’t feel my rear end and I don’t think I can do another day of riding a horse one inch behind another horse,’” he says. The outfitters, as it happened, were just starting a fly-fishing program. At cocktail hour that night, they showed Steve the rudiments of fly-casting. And the next day, they took pack rods into the mountains to fish some small streams. “I caught a trout that was maybe eight inches long, but that started the journey,” he says. Back home— then Philadelphia—Steve would sneak out when he could to fish the Poconos. Full immersion into the sport happened a bit later, when the Burkes discovered Montana. They bought a ranch near Ennis, with access to the Madison River, and fished there with their children in the summers. (They now have a place in Dillon near the Beaverhead River.) “When we started fishing there, someone told B O N E F I S H & T A R P O N J O U R N A L FA L L 2 0 2 6

Steve Burke lands a brown trout.

us, ‘You have to go to The Bahamas and bonefish,’” says Steve. “It seemed like a good idea to go somewhere warm during the Montana winters.” In the early 2000s, Steve was flown down to The Bahamas to give a speech. He realized he had a free day on his schedule, so he booked a guide out of the Mangrove Cay Club in Andros to take him out. “I’d never seen a bonefish before and I couldn’t double-haul and it was windy,” he says. “The bottom line is that I didn’t catch a fish. I told my guide, ‘This is impossible.’” His guide then took his rod from him, cast sixty feet and caught a bonefish. “I thought, ‘well, I have to teach myself how to do this,’” says Steve. “I really wanted to do it again.” For the next five years, Steve went bonefishing a few days a year, which was as much as his job allowed. That changed in

Gretchen Burke with a permit caught on fly in Abaco.

2020, after he retired. “I started spending a lot more time in The Bahamas then,” says Steve. And now, he had company. *** Gretchen grew up fishing with her grandfather in Montauk with spinning rods, for striped bass and bluefish. “I’ve always loved the saltwater,” she says. The Burkes went on a trip to The Bahamas with some friends, a married couple. Gretchen fished one day with the wife. “She told me I could keep coming down here and just hang out, or I could throw myself fully into flats fishing,” says Gretchen. “And I realized that Steve would be out all day fishing and I’d be paddleboarding, swimming, or reading, and I was like, ‘What am I

East End, Grand Bahama. Photo: Paul King/Free Fly

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doing?’ I really liked being out there. I just had to figure it out.” So she went all-in. But she didn’t have Steve teach her. And here, Gretchen offers some very wise advice for couples. “It’s so intimidating to go with someone who is so much better at everything when you’re just starting out,” she says. “I’ve had this wonderful guide who I started fishing with six years ago, when he was 24 years old, and we have a great time. He’s got great perspective. He tells me, ‘It’s just fishing.’ But he’s tough on me, too, and tells me, ‘You should’ve done this or that.’ But there’s no way I could have started out with Steve telling me what to do.” And now? “Gretchen is way more into saltwater flats fishing than I am,” says Steve. “She usually stays out on the water later than I do.” He adds: “It’s been so much fun to share this with Gretchen. Anytime I say, ‘let’s go fishing in the salt, she says ‘yes’ immediately. It would be very tough to be married to someone who said ‘no.’ I love my wife and love spending time with her, and the ability to share this with her has been very special.” The Burkes have fished all over the place, including the Abacos, Grand Bahama, the Keys, Belize, and the Seychelles, and are going to Mexico in the fall for the first time. They chase—and love—all three major flats species. “This fishing never gets old, and it takes us to beautiful places in the world, and we’ve met so many interesting people,” says Steve. An ideal flats day for Steve is “to catch a bunch of bones and then bang my head against the wall for hours to try to find a permit.” For Gretchen, the ideal day is one she already had, in Great Harbour Cay a few years ago. “It was at sunset, with that magical light, and I was standing on a flat and there were hundreds of tailing bonefish. They looked like little sails.” Though Steve primarily used flats fishing to get away from work, he does see an analogy between it and something he used to be very good at in his job. “To me, catching a difficult fish on the flats is like making a hit movie,” he says. “You need a good script and great actors. You need to find the market and release it at the right time. Ten things need to go right to make it happen. It’s the same thing with a difficult fish. If you’re a person who enjoys the pursuit of doing everything right and are honest with yourself when you screw up, that kind of challenge is a lot like making a movie.” For Gretchen, the allure of the flats is simple: “I get a rush of adrenaline when I see a tarpon,” she says. “I literally almost get sick to my stomach. I just love it. I can’t get that rush from anywhere else, like, say, playing pickleball.”

have given us so much, and bonefish, tarpon and permit have given us so much, that we should be generous and give back, to honor the joy we’ve gotten from these places,” says Steve. The Burkes, who are also active in giving back in Montana, have since also done other philanthropic works in other places they fish in The Bahamas, such as building a basketball court in Andros. Conservation has become one of the primary focuses of the Burkes philanthropy now and is the reason they’ve become even more involved in BTT in recent years. “Human beings have the ability to dramatically alter nature in a way that’s terrible,” says Steve. “I look at BTT’s mission and see that everything they’re doing is trying to preserve and enhance a sport that we love in the face of those human pressures. BTT is mission-driven and the money ends up in the right place.” He points out BTT’s efforts to keep permit from being overfished and plant mangroves in Abaco. “That is really important to us,” Steve says. “If you could wave a wand and make these places fish like they did 30 years ago, that’s a wand you’d want to wave. I’m not saying BTT can perform that magic. But it can help.” Monte Burke is The New York Times bestselling author of Lords of the Fly, Rivers Always Reach the Sea, Saban, 4th And Goal, and Sowbelly. His latest book, Men of Troy, is available now. He is a contributing editor at Forbes and Garden & Gun.

*** In 2021, Steve was fishing with his friend, Bob Hall. They were shooting through a creek to get from one side of Deep Water Cay to the other. “I looked over and saw all of these tents on the shore, like the big army ones,” says Steve. “And I asked our guide what they were for.” His guide told him that people had been living there since Hurricane Dorian. “And I was like, ‘Dorian was two years ago!’” says Steve. “These people had no homes. There were mothers getting water and kids running around. I turned to Bob and said, ‘we have to do something.’” Steve says he wanted to make a meaningful donation. “But I didn’t want the money misused,” he says. “I wanted it to get to the people who needed it.” He did some research and concluded the best way to do that was to go through BTT. The Burkes made a pledge to fund a recovery effort, repairing and rebuilding houses, and even building some new ones. “Our feeling was that The Bahamas

Steve and Gretchen Burke.

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The Secret Lives of Permit Using acoustic telemetry and the expertise of local fishing guides, BTT researchers are uncovering the movements and habitat use of permit in Belize and Mexico—information critical to conserving the countries’ shared fishery. BY CHESTER MOORE

here is something deeply captivating about permit. Few fish combine such beauty, power, and unpredictability. One moment a fish may be tailing across a shallow flat in plain view. The next it slips off into deeper water, leaving behind little more than a swirl, inspiring equal measures of admiration, frustration, and fascination. Belize and southern Mexico are home to one of the world’s great permit fisheries, drawing anglers year after year in hopes of connecting with this enigmatic fish, the ultimate obsession for many saltwater fly-anglers. Part of that appeal comes from the permit’s refusal to surrender its mysteries. Guides know where to find them. Anglers catch them every season. Yet permit still often leave behind more questions than answers. Those questions reach beyond angling curiosity to the future of the fishery. As coastal ecosystems face increasing pressure from development and environmental changes, understanding permit behavior, movements, and life history is becoming increasingly important to the future of the species and the fisheries that depend on it. That’s what makes an expanding Bonefish & Tarpon Trust (BTT) research effort in Belize and Mexico so significant: it aims to reveal where permit go, how they use different habitats, and what those movements mean—information essential to conservation.

FOLLOWING THE FISH

To answer those pressing questions, BTT researchers are relying heavily on acoustic telemetry, an aquatic tracking method that uses sound signals to monitor the movements of tagged fish and other wildlife. 26

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A school of permit in Mexico. Photo: Marc Montocchio

“When we catch a permit to tag, we keep it in the water, turn it upside down, make an incision into the abdomen, and insert a tag into the abdominal cavity,” says Dr. Aaron Adams, BTT’s Director of Science and Conservation. “Then we’ll use two or three stitches to stitch the fish up before releasing it. That process is less than five minutes.” Receivers positioned throughout northern Belize and southern Mexico record tagged fish whenever they pass within roughly 500 yards of a receiver, logging each fish’s unique identification code along with the date and time. Each tagged permit becomes a source of information about a world that anglers rarely see. As detections accumulate, researchers will begin to understand how permit move among different habitats, when they move, how long they stay in particular areas, and how various parts of the ecosystem are connected. For Adams, the goal extends far beyond simply tracking fish. “A lot of our focus at BTT is on what’s termed ‘spatial management’,” he says. “That involves understanding the habitat needs and movement patterns of bonefish, tarpon, and permit. Then we overlay that with habitat maps and data on where fishing occurs. This process gives us the ability to prioritize areas for protection.” But technology is only part of the story. “We always collaborate with the fishing guides,” Adams says. “They have a lot of knowledge. We have knowledge, and together we can answer a lot of those important questions.” Dr. Addiel Perez, BTT’s Belize-Mexico Director of Science, has seen firsthand how valuable that knowledge can be. “Sometimes you would see a guide, and maybe he was a commercial fisherman many years ago, or his parent was,” Perez says. “That

BTT’s Dr. Aaron Adams and Dr. Addiel Perez tag a permit. Photo: Lysandra Chan

knowledge gets transmitted from generation to generation. It’s cumulative knowledge.” Local knowledge helped identify some of the first areas targeted for research. Guides have long observed permit gathering in specific locations during certain times of year and moving through channels connecting reefs, bays, and flats. Early acoustic detections are supporting many of those observations. “What we have noticed is that the receivers that are recording the most tags are closer to entrance areas,” Perez says. “This aligns with the local knowledge of guides, who know that the permit come in, feed, and go back to reef areas.” A permit encountered on a Belize flat may spend time on reefs, move through channels, utilize bays, and eventually travel to spawning areas. Identifying those connections allows scientists to understand not simply where permit are found, but which habitats may be most important during different stages of their lives. The waters of northern Belize and southern Mexico form a connected marine ecosystem. In Belize, permit are protected as a catch-and-release species and gillnets have been banned for years. In contrast, permit receive no special protections in Mexico, which creates unique conservation challenges for a fish that routinely crosses the international boundary. Researchers are working to better understand how habitats in Belize and Mexico function together to support the fishery, and how conservation

measures in one area may ultimately benefit fish that utilize habitats in both countries. The value of that information has already been demonstrated elsewhere. One of the most important permit studies conducted in Florida revealed that a large percentage of permit using Lower Keys flats migrated to a single spawning location known as Western Dry Rocks. “What we found is that about 75 percent of the permit on the flats in the Lower Keys migrate to this one spot to spawn,” Adams says. That discovery eventually helped resource managers better understand the vulnerability of spawning fish and informed conservation actions aimed at decreasing mortality at the aggregation site. The finding also illustrated a simple reality: protecting the flats alone may not be enough if critical spawning habitats remain vulnerable, and the fishery can only be safeguarded when both are considered. The lesson was direct: If scientists do not know where fish go, they may overlook some of the most important habitats sustaining the population. “We don’t go into a project with a preconceived result,” Adams says. “The conservation applications of the research are based on what the data tell us.” In many ways, the Belize-Mexico permit project follows that same philosophy. Researchers are allowing the fish themselves to reveal which habitats matter most and how those habitats connect across the wider ecosystem. BTT hopes the work can provide similar insights to those gained in Florida, particularly into the spawning areas and aggregation sites that may be critical to sustaining permit populations throughout Belize and Mexico. “We’re getting our first-level data on their movement patterns and habitat use. Big picture, long term, our goal is to figure out the essential feeding areas for permit, what their migration routes are, and where they spawn,” Adams says. What drives this innovative effort is a collaboration between scientists and guides, each bringing a different perspective to the same pursuit.

THE PEOPLE CHASING THE MYSTERY

Chris Leeman of Blue Bonefish Lodge in San Pedro, Belize, and Moises Cordova of Xcalak, Mexico, are not only veteran

BTT is working closely with guides and anglers in Belize and Mexico to tag permit. Photo: Lysandra Chan caption B O N E F I S H & T A R P O N J O U R N A L FA L L 2 0 2 6

an emerging concern. Scientists still do not fully understand how those changes may affect juvenile permit and recruitment. “We need to ensure that we understand the different life stages because the threats are not only to the adults but also to the juveniles,” he says. The observation serves as a reminder that protecting permit requires understanding far more than where adults feed. Researchers are attempting to crack the code of an entire life cycle that spans reefs, channels, bays, flats and shorelines. Understanding those connections is becoming increasingly urgent as many of the habitats permit depend upon face growing pressure across the region. An underwater acoustic receiver. Photo: Dr. Addiel Perez

permit guides but also active participants in BTT’s tagging project. Leeman has spent countless days watching permit behavior throughout Belizean waters. “The main focus of this whole project is understanding migration routes between the flats,” Leeman says. “My biggest question is: where do these fish go when they leave the flats to spawn?” Part of that curiosity comes from observing permit day after day and watching how weather, habitat conditions, and fishing pressure influence their behavior. Even though Leeman has logged years on the water, many of the fish’s most important movements remain hidden from view. Across the border in Mexico, Cordova sees the same mystery from a different stretch of water. “What I enjoy most about the permit is searching for and finding them,” he says. Like Leeman and many guides who specialize in permit, Cordova has spent years observing their behavior. Some days fish can be found tailing across shallow flats. Other days they seem to disappear entirely. “I would like to discover if they reside in a single area or place, for how long, how long they are in their breeding season, and why they are found in large groups in the bay,” he says. His questions mirror many of those being asked by BTT researchers. Though they work in different countries, both Leeman and Cordova are part of the collaborative effort between guides and scientists to better understand permit and the interconnected habitats that sustain them.

LOOKING BEYOND THE FLATS

For Perez, some of the most important questions center on the earliest stages of a permit’s life. Years ago, while walking along a shoreline near Ambergris Caye, he encountered something remarkable. “It was amazing to see at least 300 little permit, each about the size of a coin,” he recalls, the sight having made a lasting impression. “I was so amazed, and I was so happy. I said, ‘Well, well, that’s good. That means permit are spawning.’” The observation offered more than a memorable moment. It provided a view of a life stage few anglers ever witness and confirmed the importance of understanding the species throughout its entire life cycle. Those juvenile fish depend on sandy beaches, habitats that are very different from the flats where adult permit are pursued by anglers. Today, many of those juvenile habitats face increasing pressure from coastal development, shoreline modification, and environmental changes, raising the stakes for juvenile permit and the future of the fishery. Perez also points to growing accumulations of sargassum as 28

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A juvenile permit. Photo: BTT

PROTECTING THE FUTURE

“The biggest concern for permit is habitat degradation and loss,” Adams says. Some historically productive permit areas have already been altered by dredging and development associated with the expansion of coastal infrastructure. Leeman notes the same sargassum concerns as Perez. “Sargassum has become a major factor,” he says. “We’ve lost a high percentage of turtle grass on the oceanside flats because of it.” The changes have altered habitat and forced anglers to adapt. “We fish more dry flies now like floating crab patterns and other buoyant flies,” he says. “A sinking fly isn’t as effective as it once was because of the changes caused by sargassum.” For Leeman, these changes reinforce the importance of understanding the fishery before critical habitats are lost. “In Belize, we’re dealing with extremely rapid development,” he says. “I’ve always been an advocate for using science to inform and implement policy.” That philosophy illustrates the wider approach behind BTT’s work. Research is not conducted simply to satisfy curiosity. The goal is to provide the information necessary to make informed conservation and management decisions. This is certainly true when it comes to BTT’s permit tagging project. For now, many of the permit’s secrets remain hidden. But as BTT’s tagging efforts continue in Belize and Mexico, researchers are confident that the fish themselves will reveal more of the story. Chester Moore is an award-winning wildlife journalist and conservationist. He is host of the Higher Calling Wildlife® podcast and an outreach by the same name that mentors teens with critical illness and traumatic loss on how to become wildlife conservationists. Learn more at highercalling.net.

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Restoring Nature’s Network BTT has invested decades studying where flats fish live throughout their life cycles. Now, across Florida, The Bahamas, and Mexico, the organization is scaling up habitat restoration fivefold, making each project part of the coastal habitat mosaic. BY ALEXANDRA MARVAR

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est Gap Creek, Grand Bahama, April 2026: An old logging road, built straight through a wide, flat tidal creek during the mid-century Bahamian logging boom, is being destroyed. The excavator digs in and displaces a wide swath of the causeway near the north shore. At first, the water trickles through, and soon, it rushes. “You could see the current flowing,” says Rashema Ingraham, Caribbean Program Director at Bonefish & Tarpon Trust, who worked with the Bahamas Ministry of Works & Family Island Affairs to make the project possible. This is what it looks like when natural tidal interconnectivity—disrupted for more than half a century—is suddenly restored. “That’s what the water wanted to do,” she says. “It was blocked, and now it had life again.” It wasn’t just the tide that was finding its way: In the very first hours of the restoration, a tarpon made its way up the channel. A BTT associate caught and released it, Ingraham recalls. Snappers and sergeant majors took to the creek, too. The same wowing transformations are in store across Florida’s sport fisheries, part of a newly expanded portfolio of habitat restoration projects based on BTT research. Over the next five years, the organization aims to undertake 15 such projects,

several of which are ready to break ground—an ambitious 500% increase over the past five years. It represents a newly declared central focus for the organization and the team is all in, according to BTT Vice President for Conservation & Public Policy Kellie Ralston. Leadership and staff recently came together to complete BTT’s five-year strategic plan, during which habitat restoration was resoundingly pegged as the organization’s top priority. “Especially for the species that are catch-and-release only, we need to look outside of traditional fisheries management tools,” and consider “the whole picture” of habitat, Ralston says. August Creek, another significant tidal creek on Grand Bahama, is queued for this fall. There, the focus is on the tidal creeks and mangroves that sustain, among other species, the country’s $169-million-per-year bonefish fishery. BTT launched its Bahamas Mangrove Restoration Project after Category 5 Hurricane Dorian devastated the red mangroves of Grand Bahama and neighboring Abaco in 2019. To date, BTT and partners have planted more than 150,000 mangroves across the northern islands, with on-theground efforts being led by BTT staff and local fishing guides and supported by students and volunteers. BTT also co-founded the Bahamas Mangrove Alliance (BMA), which is working toward a

BTT and partners are restoring natural hydrology in more than 1,000 acres in Rookery Bay in Southwest Florida. Photo: Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve B O N E F I S H & T A R P O N J O U R N A L FA L L 2 0 2 6

BTT and the Bahamas Ministry of Works and Family Island Affairs break ground at West Gap Creek in Grand Bahama. Photo: Preston Knowles

goal of planting 1 million mangroves by the end of 2026. Another new project is underway in Mexico, where BTT is partnering with Ducks Unlimited in the Yucatán to benefit both waterfowl and juvenile tarpon. Habitat mapping in Belize is continuing as well. But the majority of this next generation of habitat restoration projects will unfold across Southwest Florida. The expansion is the logical culmination of 10-plus years of groundwork. “The habitat work that we’ve already done, particularly in The Bahamas, and then in Southwest Florida, have really set the stage,” Ralston says. “This is the next iteration in a stepwise process of science informing habitat protection and restoration.”

A DECADE OF DATA

Numerous studies over the years have documented adult tarpon movement. But juvenile tarpon nursery habitat? This was wildly under-documented. Which specific habitats do juveniles use and why? These questions were only partly answered when BTT set out to lead research, conservation, and restoration of juvenile tarpon habitats. Since 2016, BTT has run a mapping project that enlists anglers and guides to report tarpon nursery sites, which BTT scientists then visit and grade as natural or altered. Today, this map identifies some 600 creeks and ponds across Florida where a tarpon under 12 inches has been reported—and as BTT scientists investigated each site, they went on to find that more than 65% of these sites are degraded by human activity. This inventory—paired with BTT’s tagging and acoustic telemetry program, which has tracked hundreds of tarpon—shed light on which specific fragments of habitat the fish depend on, and which disconnected or degraded sites would do the most good if repaired. The data was indispensable: A single tarpon may live into its seventies, and this feat involves a dance through coastal and marine ecosystems that unfolds over years. When tarpon spawn, they spawn many miles offshore, explains Dr. Aaron Adams, BTT’s Director of Science and Conservation. When the eggs hatch, the larvae that emerge float in the open ocean for weeks. “If they’re 34

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lucky enough to survive,” he says, “they make their way inshore, to find backwater mangrove swamps.” This is where they take refuge for the first two years of their lives, before graduating into backwater ponds, mangrove-lined creeks, and the open estuary for the first decade of life. Surviving beyond that means reaching sexual maturity. “As they grow, they use a broader range of habitats, eventually migrating up and down the coast,” Adams says. Restoring isolated parcels along these routes—some acreage here, some acreage there—is an ecological benefit. Birds can fly between these restored areas. Animals can migrate between them. Even seeds can be carried on the wind. But fish need more. They need hydrological connectivity between healthy and intact habitats. And BTT is looking at every way possible to link restored and natural habitats together, and to choose parcels for restoration that plug into a larger network, a “coastal ‘habitat mosaic,’” Adams says. “We’re not restoring a spot here and a spot The Marco Shores Lake project within Rookery Bay entails adjusting or replacing this culvert to allow juvenile sportfish passage into and out of Marco Shores Lake via a tidal creek. Photo: Florida DEP

BTT and partners have planted more than 150,000 mangroves on Grand Bahama and Abaco. Photo: Paul King/Free Fly

there without incorporating or accounting for that connectivity.” Connectivity is being increasingly proven essential to ecosystemic recovery: Separate long-term research studies in the U.S. South have found significantly higher biodiversity in habitat patches connected by corridors versus in isolated ones—a benefit that appears to compound over time. And a July 2025 synthesis of more than 300 studies on temperate seascape connectivity found coastal systems function as an interconnected mosaic and that, to be truly effective, seascape restoration needs to go beyond one-off habitat projects to projects that link all the different components together in one contiguous system. Most people don’t have a sense of “all that has to happen to create a well-functioning ecosystem—which then provides the fishery,” says Adams. “With a lot of the juvenile tarpon habitat restoration, it’s not necessarily going in and just building a wetland: It’s restoring that natural hydrologic connectivity.”

FOLLOWING BTT TEMPLATES

From BTT’s 600-strong map of candidate tarpon habitats, one of these sites was a small tidal creek flowing into the Charlotte Harbor estuary, northwest of Fort Myers on the Gulf Coast: Coral Creek. Decades back, developers dredged six parallel canals into the coastal pine forest here, with visions of waterfront residential lots. But the housing project would never come to pass. The canals were left abandoned, and eventually, the property became part of Charlotte Harbor Preserve State Park, which runs to Gasparilla Sound and the tarpon waters of Boca Grande. According to Adams, it was earmarked by the state for restoration—but what kind of restoration? One possibility was to fill the canals back in, and convert the area back to pine flatwoods. But BTT and collaborators had other ideas, Adams said. They had learned tarpon larvae were riding in on the tide and becoming juveniles here. BTT and partners dove in, devoting three years testing a number of design approaches across the six canals, ultimately reimagining what restoration here could look like: They converted

BTT’s habitat restoration work in Florida benefits juvenile tarpon and snook. Photo: Adrian Gray B O N E F I S H & T A R P O N J O U R N A L FA L L 2 0 2 6

the relic waterways into tidal creeks, tracking the health of juvenile tarpon and snook along the way. When the project wrapped in 2019, BTT scientist JoEllen Wilson’s research found the tarpon and snook were growing twice as fast as they had been and moving out to open water in greater numbers. Learnings from this success could flow forward, as a replicable model. Now, the BTT team is ready to start applying this knowledge across bonefish, tarpon, and snook fisheries. “This scaling up that we’re starting now is taking that Charlotte Harbor conceptual model,” Adams says, “and putting it on a much broader spatial scale.”

TEED UP

So far in 2026, BTT has pinned down four new sites across the Charlotte Harbor watershed where habitat restoration will make the biggest impact. Damon Moore of Oyster River Ecology helped the organization analyze six candidate sites, narrowing the list down to the strongest four. Each has documented juvenile tarpon, altered habitat, and owners open to collaborating with BTT. All four have been prioritized for the next phase: design and permitting. South of Charlotte Harbor, near Naples, three more projects are planned around the Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. These would restore tidal flow across more than 1,000 acres—and they are “shovel-ready,” Adams says: already designed and permitted, with support from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the state. To break ground, BTT and partners including Ducks Unlimited and the Miccosukee Tribe submitted a construction grant request to NOAA last year for $6.3 million over two years. As the grant awaits a final approval decision, language supporting the project was included in a House appropriations bill, which Ralston sees as a hopeful sign for federal funding. The project will be “science-led, policy-facilitated,” she says: Where ecological priority, political will, and willing landowner partners overlap is what she refers to as “the holy grail” for a BTT restoration project.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

“In our age of instant gratification and short attention spans, what we’re talking about is a process,” Adams says. And these processes require patience: “From identifying a site to actually getting the restoration done, you’re talking at least five years.” Beyond time, these projects take funding—$500,000 to $600,000 in assessments, designs, reviews, and permits before the actual restoration can be done. Each project draws on the science of the project before it; 10 years of mapping, tagging, and testing. And this wave of momentum arrives not a moment too soon. The next generation of tarpon, just a few inches long, are taking refuge in a murky backwater pond or creek. Soon, they’ll start moving outwards, through creeks, into the estuary, along the coast, before coming back to the passes to spawn and, with luck—and connected, healthy waterways—one day taking to the waters of Boca Grande at 150 pounds. Each stage of that journey depends on the next piece of the mosaic being accessible, with all of these habitats flowing together. Alexandra Marvar is a freelance journalist based in Savannah, Georgia. Her writing can be found in The New York Times, National Geographic, Smithsonian Magazine and elsewhere.

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Restored West Gap Creek. Photo: Preston Knowles

A Closer Look: Creek Restoration in The Bahamas As the restorations of West Gap and August creeks wrap up this year, BTT Caribbean Program Director Rashema Ingraham says this is just the beginning. “These two creeks that we’re working on are just going to be the pilot for so many other creek projects that need to happen throughout The Bahamas,” she says. BTT and the Bahamian government are using these initial creek restorations as templates: Ingraham serves on national committees working to turn the method into formal management plans for creek restoration across the country, scaling up the positive impact. BTT has already built out a science-backed list of prioritized creeks on Grand Bahama and elsewhere that are promising candidates for restoring that tidal flow. This list, and the two successful projects so far, took shape over the course of community meetings where residents were asked which sites should be prioritized first. Removing the decades-old logging roads opens up large areas of creeks and flats that have been cut off from the tide for decades, increasing the areas available for mangroves to repopulate and support more bonefish. Reforested coastlines will also help buffer low-lying settlements against storm surge and rising seas. “To be first out of the gate, and to be successful with our first one, and have others use our methods and our experiences as their example,” Ingraham says, “that’s something we’re going to be proud of.”

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Come for the Fishing, Stay for the Conservation at the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary BY JOEL R. JOHNSON

“P

eople come for the fishing and stay for the conservation.” I first heard that phrase while working at Trout Unlimited (TU) a decade ago, and any Bonefish & Tarpon Trust (BTT) angler could just as easily have said the same thing. TU has done a remarkable job of training generations of angling conservationists over its 67-year history, and BTT is inspiring that same conservation-minded ethic among saltwater anglers. Those are the kinds of people I’d fish with any day of the week. It’s no secret that fishing with a guide who supports conservation is also a smart choice. But fishing the Florida Keys—one of America’s most iconic national marine sanctuaries—with a NOAA Blue Star guide takes that experience to another level. For me, growing up on Jose Wejebe’s television shows, fishing in South Florida always felt like a necessary rite of passage. I knew about Everglades National Park, but what I didn’t realize was that, between Key Largo and Key West, the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary had already been making my fishing better. Managed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary spans about 4,539 square miles across the archipelago. Once a sparsely populated chain of mangrovecovered islands inhabited by Indigenous peoples as far back as 10,000 BCE—and later by the Calusa during European colonization—it is now home to about 80,000 residents and welcomes more than 3 million visitors each year. Throughout that history, fishing has remained central to life in the Keys. Today, saltwater recreational fishing generates more than $9.8 billion annually for Florida—and the Keys economy supports a $470 million flats fishing industry for bonefish, tarpon, permit, and other shallow-water species that depend on healthy seagrass beds and the rich biodiversity supported by coral reefs. Since 1975, the sanctuary has steadily expanded its protections, beginning with the reefs off Key Largo and Looe Key before its largest expansion in the 1990s, safeguarding both Florida’s remarkable coral ecosystems and the marine life that depends on them. As President and CEO of the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, NOAA’s nonprofit partner, I see every trip into the

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Anglers head out fishing in the Florida Keys. Photo: Silver Kings

sanctuary as an opportunity not only to enjoy an incredible fishery, but also to deepen our appreciation for one of America’s greatest marine treasures. I’ve made it my personal mission to fly-fish in every sanctuary where its allowed. So far, some of my most memorable days on sanctuary waters weren’t defined by the fish I caught, but by the conversations they inspired—about why these waters are so extraordinary and what it will take to keep them that way. Overall, NOAA manages 629,000 square miles of sanctuaries from the Keys to the Gulf, several in the Great Lakes, more on the Pacific Coast, and even sanctuaries in the Pacific Islands. In fact, I caught my first sanctuary bonefish not in Atlantic waters but in the heart of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale sanctuary off a flat on Oahu. Yes, pacific bonefish, ‘ ’io in the Hawaiian language, are as big and challenging as anglers say they are. I caught mine on the last cast, in the last hour, and the last flat we decided to hit on the way in. When my line went slack after it went over a reef, I thought it was all over, but ‘ ’io graced my perseverance. Over the years, I’ve fished the waters of Everglades National Park and from Key Biscayne northward, and I’ve loved exploring all of them. But there’s something uniquely gratifying about fishing in the birthplace of flats fishing, the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. My first Florida Keys sanctuary bonefish on the fly came while fishing with Capt. Bob Beighley. When I reached out to Double Haul Charters, I knew I wanted to take advantage of NOAA’s Blue Star program—a group of fishing guides who pledge to educate their clients about the sanctuary. The Blue Star program, which also includes dive shops up and down the Keys, puts the mission of the sanctuary into the hands of the community. In fact, sanctuaries are often powered by their local communities. Over 400 sanctuary advisory council members advise at 18 sanctuaries and two national marine monuments, and a host of partnerships with local nonprofits, universities, and technical partners support research, monitoring, and restoration efforts, usually working alongside a small but mighty team of a superintendent and a handful of staff. On my trip with Captain Bob, I invited my friend Shannon

Joel Johnson. Photo: National Marine Sanctuary Foundation

Martin from the Kenai River Sportfishing Association to join me. We were both in town for the American Sportfishing Association summit, and I owed her one, having been a recent guest at their annual rodeo in Alaska. Being a Blue Star fishing guide meant Bob was supposed to give us a short briefing before fishing, which he did, and tips on the rules, fish ecology and habitat, and how to generally be a good angler in the sanctuary throughout the trip. I was delighted to learn we would be heading for the Marquesas, a small uninhabited island atoll about twenty miles west of Key West. Remote, beautiful, and for the day, all ours. We scanned for rolling tarpon once we arrived but ultimately set up on a long leeward flat which Bob slowly polled as fish cruised in on the falling tide. A guide of few words, Bob didn’t waste them. Each efficient instruction was a casting tip, tidbit of history, and an explanation of fish behavior that made the day not just fun but informative. He explained why we’d find fish following rays, the merits and challenges of tagging, and why a falling tide brought the fish in on this particular flat and not another. As my eyes adjusted to the bottom, the gray ghost in singles and pairs seemed to appear out of thin air and then vanish again. Shannon caught two before me and I hooped and hollered each time because half the fun of fishing is watching a friend catch. When I finally landed one myself, after missing a couple, it was because Bob said they eat facing down, “they pin it—the crab pattern, so pause.” Bone-fever jitters set aside, I learned Bob has been guiding over 25 years and preferred to educate his anglers one-by-one into a becoming lifelong stewards on subsequent trips. To him, in the remoteness and beauty of the Marquesas, a place he’d camped out solo for weeks at a time, patiently waiting for bonefish to cross his path was the quintessential expression of the sanctuary. Keys guides have made it a quiet, persistent habit to help their clients understand their waters, and why they saw so many—or so few—fish on the trip. They want you to know that the improving fishing in the sanctuary is the result of decades of

conservation and shouldn’t be taken for granted. A few years ago, I met Capt. Will Benson, a well-known Keys guide, at Capitol Hill Ocean Week, the conference our foundation produces to bring leading ocean advocates to Washington, DC, to connect with federal agencies and legislators. We quickly made a promise to fish the sanctuary together. Captain Will is a charismatic guide and advocate and was one of the first to sign up for the Blue Star program when NOAA launched it. A Keys native, Will has been a firsthand witness to changes to the fishery over several decades. Besides a consummate insider knowledge of Florida’s flats, nothing gets him talking faster than asking him for tips on how to muster the community to make recreational fishing more sustainable in a sanctuary. Will received NOAA’s Sanctuary Volunteer of the Year Award in 2017 after years of service on the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council. A representative of the guide community since he was 17, he’s also a Bonefish & Tarpon Trust Guide Ambassador and Conservation Captain. These guides serve as citizen scientists, contributing observations and data that have transformed our understanding of fisheries—and they’re often the first line of defense. It was guides who first documented widespread lemon shark depredation in Everglades National Park. They also first reported the unusual spinning behavior in fish that was ultimately traced to a neurotoxin spreading from the Lower Keys, affecting more than 80 marine species. And guide-tagged tarpon revealed the species’ extraordinary migrations—from the Chesapeake Bay to the Gulf of Mexico and back—reshaping how scientists and managers think about fisheries across state boundaries. On our second trip together, and after we caught bonefish from Will’s skiff, we came across a small undulating intimate flat with tailing bones in the corner pocket on the bottom of a tide. In his fashion, he suggested we hop out of the boat and approach on foot. With the gentle blue expanse to the right under a slate gray sky, and a few inches of falling water at our feet, we patiently watched eager bonefish kick up their tails, dig their faces in the

Johnson lands a bonefish on fly in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. Photo: Shannon Martin

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sand, blissfully unaware of our presence. Now, my favorite kind of fishing trip almost always reaches a point where I’m comfortable enough to stop being guided and simply fish together. Did I mention I like watching people catch? Of course, observing a master guide is a great way to learn, so we stalked that flat together. I missed the first two takes and had to give it a rest to tighten up the accuracy of my cast. Will took a shot here and there, but damn they were being picky. Twice a fish grabbed my fly so quick that I couldn’t get it on in time before the fish darted over a bit of exposed reef where the tension on the line yanked the fly from its mouth. Finally, one ate and made a blisteringly fast run. In the setting sun, with a cool wind at our backs and bonefish all around us, I realized the best lesson in why we should cherish the sanctuary was the quality of the fishing itself. She ran but I never quite had her on. And as the best anglers will tell you, it’s good when the fish win. Sometimes. During trips with Will, I learned that the Keys guide community is a close-knit group, a “family,” and quite proficient at self-advocacy for their waters. It’s not just home to bonefish and tarpon, it’s their home, and Will and his fellow guides see conservation as a very pragmatic act where compromises must be had occasionally, but the science must be done continuously. His philosophy is to never waste an opportunity to talk about what matters, to show everyone the progress the fishery is making, what could be better, and how to engage the guides on the frontline. For families of anglers, a visit to the Florida Keys Ocean Discovery Center in Key West offers another way to experience the sanctuary. Recently, with support from NOAA Fisheries and National Park Trust, my foundation hosted a group of veterans and their families for a day at the visitor center, followed by a party-boat fishing trip with the FishMonster team and Captain Rusty Oberst of Rusty Bucket Charters.

Capt. Rusty is also a Blue Star guide, and before the group charter we spent some time spin-fishing together. Beyond our shared Jersey Shore roots, we hit it off immediately. Though we weren’t fly-fishing or targeting bonefish, his infectious enthusiasm and gift for building confidence in his clients made the entire day more memorable. The families began by exploring the ecology of the reefs, mangroves, and seagrass beds through hands-on exhibits before heading out on the water. The joyful squeals of kids racing through a “please touch” discovery center, then dropping cut bait to the bottom and waiting for that first tug, were all it took to connect them with this remarkable place. Fishing and conservation in the sanctuary don’t have to be complicated—just fun. Blue Star or not, a charter that creates access for families who might not otherwise have the opportunity to experience these waters is part of what makes a national marine sanctuary so special. Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary guides do more than help people catch—they help ensure there will be healthy places to fish for generations to come. If you’re looking for a guide who sees conservation as part of the job, seek out one certified through NOAA’s Blue Star program or one of the more than one hundred guides in BTT’s Conservation Captain program. I encourage you to go with someone who will invite you to appreciate these waters—someone who understands that the greatest reward is recognizing all that the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary gives and understands the responsibility to give a little back. Joel R. Johnson is President and CEO of the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, an avid fly angler, and on a mission to connect more Americans to their waters.

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Through the Guides Conservation Captain Q&A

Captain Michael Peralta

San Pedro, Belize

Where do you fish, and how did you first learn to fly-fish? I am from San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize, and I guide for El Pescador Lodge and fish all the surrounding waters. I got into fly-fishing when I was around 12 or 13 years old, thanks to a great friend and neighbor, Luis Paz. How did you become a fishing guide? I have been guiding now for about 10 years. One day, out of the blue, Luis Paz asked me if I was interested in being his deckhand whenever I went on school break. (I already used to go with my uncle on snorkeling trips on the weekends and

Capt. Peralta lands a permit.

school breaks to earn some school money). It turned into me going on his boat at every chance when classes were out. Luis’s dad, Tomas Paz, a veteran guide from San Pedro, also started to have me on his boat, especially on windy days or for long weeks when he needed some help poling the boat around. Thankfully, when I was sure I wanted to become a fly-fishing guide, I started saving up to buy a boat. With the support of some of the guides and the owner of El Pescador, I got my boat and my motor and started guiding on my own.

Capt. Peralta poles along a flat.

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Do you have a specialty? What is your favorite species to target? My specialty is to show and transmit the love and passion I have for this sport to anyone I guide. I cannot pick one favorite fish over the other since I love them all, but for different reasons: bonefish fight hard and are the most willing to eat a fly when it’s cast and stripped the right way; permit are fun just trying to figure out where they are going to be based on conditions, and trying to make every shot count to entice an eat; and tarpon are just amazing. Just to see their mouth open wide to eat a fly and all their acrobatics when hooked. I love the pursuit and hunt that fly-fishing offers. I get to fish through whoever is on my bow because I get to call the shots and make decisions based on the client’s expertise with a fly rod. It’s such a rewarding feeling

when the client can leave with the same love that I have for fishing and the habitat. What makes fishing in Northern Belize so special? Fishing in Northern Belize is so special because of the diversity that we have. Based on weather conditions, we could be fishing for bonefish, permit, and tarpon in shallow lagoons to flats, and even on the reef. We could focus on targeting one species, or we could get shots at a slam. We’ll even have opportunities to fish for other species such as snook, triggerfish, jacks, or barracuda. And we have permit that school up and tail on shallow flats where we can sometimes wade, or we could be fishing on the edge of a 20-foot-deep canal. We also have lots of resident tarpon, and all throughout the summer, we have a tarpon migration. What has been your experience as a member of the Belize Flats Fishery Association (BFFA)? Being a member of the BFFA has taught me that a unified and determined voice is powerful. All Belizean guides should be involved because we all depend on the same resources. If we don’t stand together and have a say in the decisions being made that affect the flats (that later affect our livelihoods for generations to come), nobody can. I like to quote Mr. Eworth Garbutt, President of the BFFA, who says, “To whom much is given, much is expected!” We have been blessed to be able to make a living all year long in the most beautiful flats and an amazing fishery. He also says, “Guiding generations is the best teaching we can give.”

What was your experience attending BTT’s International Science Symposium last fall? Attending BTT’s Science Symposium was an awesome experience. I had the chance to meet guides from The Bahamas and Florida and learn about the differences and similarities in our fisheries. We all had something in common: all of our fisheries face destructive development. Why is a healthy environment important to you? What concerns do you have? A healthy environment is most important to me because it means a healthy fishery, and it also means a long-lasting industry for future generations. My main concern for Belize’s fisheries and marine environment comes from destructive development, like over-the-water structures, dredging, and mangrove clearing. What are ways guides can be environmentally friendly while on the water? One of the ways we try to be environmentally friendly while guiding is that we do not carry bottled water on board; instead, we have two-gallon jugs of water and a reusable cup or bottle. Also, we try to pick up the trash we see floating in from the ocean, getting everybody onboard involved, so hopefully we leave the spot better than we found it.

B OBNO EN F IESFHI S&H T&A R TA PR OPNOJNO U J ORU NR AN L ASLP R FAI NLG L 2026

The Art Of Letting Go BTT is launching an expanded bonefish catchand-release education program in The Bahamas, building on the forward-thinking guidelines developed decades ago by the Flamingo Cay Rod & Gun Club and the science-based best practices established by BTT and its partners. BY T. EDWARD NICKENS The Flamingo Cay sign welcomes anglers to the remote lodge. Photo: T. Edward Nickens

“T

he change is going to be really hard,” Tom Davidson said. “Yes,” replied Charles Bethell III. “Yes, it is.” “People don’t like change,” Davidson explained. “You know, the old school guys. They won’t like it one bit.” “Yes,” Bethell agreed. “That’s true.” “Maybe,” Davidson suggested, “there’s a way to ease into it. Let folks touch them gently. Or just for a very short period.” Bethell never folded. He remembers the conversation like it was yesterday, which it was not. It was in 2006 or 2007, and Davidson was a founder and chairman of the board of a small startup organization called Bonefish & Tarpon Unlimited, which would soon become Bonefish & Tarpon Trust. He was visiting Bethell’s Flamingo Cay bonefishing lodge to hear more about its catch-and-release policies for bonefish, and kick off an educational effort among Bahamas bonefishing lodges to promote more fish-friendly handling practices. Bethell had instituted a lodge policy that hooked and landed bonefish could not be touched. They could not be lifted out of the water for a photograph, not for the briefest moment. Period. The End. “Tom, it can’t be done halfway,” Bethell recalled. “It has to be black and white. You either touch them, or you don’t. And we’re not going to touch them.” “Oh, God, you’re making my job so hard,” Davidson said, hesitating for the briefest moment. “But I get it.” At the time, the catch-and-release ethic was fairly new to Caribbean fisheries, but Bethell wasn’t convinced it went far enough when it came to bonefish on the Bahamian flats. He’d seen too many bonefish hooked and brought to the boat, lifted from the

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water for photographs, and then released, only to be attacked and killed by sharks a few minutes later. His idea was to build a fishery in which bonefish were never removed from the water. They could be caught with barbless hooks and released with a small dehooker without ever physically touching the fish. He was convinced that bonefish handled in such a manner had much higher rates of survival than fish landed, hoisted above the water, possibly onto a boat, photographed, dehooked, and then released. Bethell was in a singular position to push the envelope when it came to best handling practices for bonefish. His Flamingo Cay Rod & Gun Club is located on the west side of Andros Island, on a smidge of high ground far from the nearest settlement. It is walled off from the world by miles of flats dotted with impossibly deep blue holes. The nearest neighbor is some 30 miles away. The only access to Flamingo Cay was, and still is, by boat or airplane, most recently a 1961 De Havilland Otter piloted by Bethell himself. By the mid-2000s, he was determined to make Flamingo Cay a place where anglers could come and have one of the sport’s best shots at a double-digit bonefish on the planet. And he was convinced that he knew how to make it happen. His anglers would arrive with dreams, and leave with little more than memories. There would be no touching of bonefish. No lifting. No photos of bonefish out of the water. No excuses. It was a formula decades ahead of its time. Thankfully, the rest of the fishing world is starting to catch up. ***

Charles Bethell flies to Flamingo Cay. Photo: T. Edward Nickens

From the beginning, the Bethells weren’t afraid of doing things the hard way. Charles Bethell’s grandfather, Charles Ernest Bethell, was a liquor distributor and real estate developer out of Nassau, and he first sailed along the west side of Andros Island in the late 1800s. An avid duck hunter, he threaded a schooner with a retractable keel into the shallow waters of the River Lees and established a rough-and-tumble waterfowling outpost. He had four sons and a daughter, Bethell says, and ultimately, all four of his sons served in the Bahamian parliament at the same time, a feat that landed them in the Guinness Book of World Records. Bethell’s father, Charles W.F. Bethell, was the eldest of the four sons, and he bought the nearby Flamingo Cay property in 1926. He built a rustic family retreat of thatched-roof huts that was run mostly as a duck-hunting camp, where for two weeks each year family and friends hunted the wintering blue-winged teal and native Bahama pintails that flocked to the island. Well-connected friends and business associates made the trip, including Edward, Duke of Windsor, who gunned and fished at Flamingo Cay while he served as Governor of The Bahamas after abdicating the English throne. On the walls of the current dining room, dozens of black-and-white photographs bear witness to the incredible hunting—and the rough, nearly African safari-esque trappings. The property fell into disuse in the 1970s and mid-1980s. “It was a ruin,” says Bethell. Spongers had overtaken the camp as

a makeshift lodging, burning building planks for firewood and trashing the place. He saved what he could and rebuilt what he couldn’t. Now, manicured pathways wind under palms, pines, and mangroves, connecting a warren of buildings—a lodge, smaller cottages, dining hall, a pro shop, and the Duck Down Bar, which is typically thumping whenever the lodge flat boats aren’t on the water. Bahamian guides pole through a massive backcountry labyrinth of lagoons, tidal creeks, and coves, with access to out islands and large swaths of shoreline. Flamingo Cay is typically booked out with groups, which commonly return year after year. The west side of Andros has a near-mythical reputation for big bonefish. Other lodges fish the waters, but getting there typically requires at least an hour’s skiff ride. Bethell has asked other guides why they make the arduous trip, and he hears a typical refrain: There’s more food on the west side of Andros. And more food makes bigger bonefish. But he shakes his head. “No,” he says. “That’s not it. It’s because we are fishing correctly.” In the early days at the lodge, Bethell was himself guiding 80 days a year at Flamingo Cay, and what he saw from the poling platform was deeply upsetting. “You would release a fish and watch its wake along the flat. And then 10 minutes later there would be a big swish, and I’d look—and no more wake. The fish get taken by sharks. Often, the angler doesn’t see this because they are looking out from the platform. But I knew there had to be a better way.” That way was a handling approach that essentially allowed no handling. Rods at the lodge carry 16-pound tippet instead of the more typical 8- and 10-pound tippet for bonefish, so anglers can boat and release fish as quickly as possible. Dehookers are a requirement. Bethell, recalls Davidson, “had a very keen sense of concern and a feeling of responsibility about fish and their habitat. And he had a deep understanding of his waters. He had the wonderful advantage of an isolated area, and he knew he needed to protect it if he were going to fish it every day.” *** When Davidson left after that first Flamingo Cay visit, he went to work pulling together partners for an educational outreach program on better bonefish handling practices. While the all-holds-barred formula at Flamingo Cay was unlikely to be widely embraced, the time was ripe for a general elevation of best handling practices in the saltwater fly-fishing community. In 2008, a brochure titled “Best Practices for Bonefish Catch & Release: A Guide for Responsible Angling in The Bahamas,” was published under the auspices of The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, The Bahamas National Trust, the Cape Eleuthera Institute, Bonefish & Tarpon Unlimited, The Bahamas Dive Association, and the Fisheries Conservation Foundation, with support from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Carleton University, and the Mote Marine Laboratory. Based on the latest available science, the publication laid out a number of bonefish handling practices that would decrease mortality and support long-term health of bonefish populations. • Barbless hooks always, and circle hooks when fishing with bait • Shorter fight times, made possible by the use of heavier equipment

A historic photo at the lodge depicts duck hunters. Photo: Flamingo Cay

• Minimizing handling by using hemostats or pliers to remove hooks while keeping fish in the water

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• No holding of fish with gloves, nets, or cloths • Avoiding exposing bonefish to air, and while taking photos, limiting time out of the water to no more than 15 seconds • No use of lip-grippers to hold fish vertically When Davidson returned to the Bahamas and Flamingo Cay a year later, he brought 1,000 of the brochures to hand out to lodges, guides, and anglers. A new era had begun. ***

An early bonefish catch-and-release brochure produced by BTT and partners. Photo: T. Edward Nickens

The quest to lessen the impact of angling on flats fishes has mirrored campaigns to foster a catch-and-release ethic in freshwater fisheries. In the saltwater arena, the approach has gained impact and urgency in recent years with what seems to be a dramatic and nearly universal increase in shark depredation on hooked and newly released fish, particularly bonefish and permit. While strategies such as limiting the time a fish is out of the water and reducing the physical handling of fish can increase survival of any species, they become vastly more critical when sharks enter the picture. For starters, a shark can feel the vibrations of a hooked and fighting fish, so the predators are often on the way as soon as a bonefish is on the line. They may already be on the alert before a first cast. Anecdotes of sharks keying in on the sound of a trolling motor or even a push pole grating in sand are common. Then, when a caught fish is released, and a shark is on the hunt, says Dr. Aaron Adams, BTT’s Director of Science and Conservation, “it’s just like a dog that finds a duck. Fish always have a smell, of course, but the makeup of that trail in the water will change when the fish is stressed. A shorter fight time, and no handling, and barbless hooks that let you pop the hook out quickly, will all reduce those stress hormones.” Deeply hooked fish will also trail blood in the water, making it that much easier for predators with highly developed senses. Studies have shown that keeping a

The main lodge at the Flamingo Cay Rod & Gun Club. Photo: T. Edward Nickens

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A bonefish is released with a dehooker. Photo: T. Edward Nickens

bonefish out of the water for longer than 15 seconds makes it six times more likely that the fish will die after release. These new realities, and the groundbreaking efforts of Bethell and his guides at Flamingo Cay, have helped lead BTT to commence a new education and outreach program on best handling practices for bonefish across the Caribbean this fall. The program will have three supporting pillars of action. The first initiative will be lodge-based; fishing lodges that agree to the best handling practices will be named BTT-endorsed lodges and will be recognized as being among the best stewards of the flats fisheries resources. A second effort will target independent guides. And the third initiative will be for anglers and the public at large. “This campaign builds on our past outreach to promote sustainable catch-and-release practices in The Bahamas,” says Jim McDuffie, President and CEO of BTT. “Charlie Bethel has not only set the example for anglers, he’s worked without compromise to instill the same values in Flamingo Cay clients. We intend to widely share how an angler’s behavior in this way is so important to the conservation of bonefish, tarpon, and permit.” Bethell couldn’t agree more. He knows he’s been figured as a hard case and a stickler for details. But ultimately, he says, “I just want this area to be better than it was when I found it.” Now, some two decades after he put the future of his fishery ahead of any client’s photograph of their bonefish-of-a-lifetime, he will have clients who have fished at other Bahamian bonefish lodges tell him about instances in which their guides asked them to pinch hook barbs down. Bethell shakes his head. “I just think, wow,” he says. “That is incredible. That is joy to my ears.”

all photographs of anglers holding bonefish from the lodge walls. Waters’ whopper of a bone exists as a sort of shrine to a past way of doing things, and an inspiration to today’s Flamingo Cay anglers that there are more gigantic bonefish out there thanks to efforts to conserve them. It’s a welcome perspective, as educating and inspiring individual anglers is key. In some areas, lodge owners may be hesitant to tie their customers’ hands. Most guides, Adams figures, know keeping bonefish in the water is the right thing to do, but it’s a tough line for a guide to draw when they rely on trip tips for part of their income. And the constant influx of new anglers into the saltwater fly-fishing sport means that the education can never stop. Ultimately, the issue of bonefish handling isn’t up to lodge owners, guides, or even regulatory bodies. “Ninety-nine percent of this effort,” says Adams, “is up to the individual angler.” One afternoon I chat up Thomas “Tommy” Arnold, an Ernst & Young managing director out of New York, who was on a return trip to Flamingo Cay with a group of friends. In the deep shade of the Duck Down Bar, we nurse beers and talk about the catch-andrelease program. I wonder how the strict rules impact the trip, and he answers without hesitation. “We know the program here,” he says, “and we appreciate the program here. How much of the experience is diminished by the fact that we can’t touch the fish? Absolutely zero. I can go to some other lodge and come home with two dozen fish pictures, and I’ll have no idea where they were taken. I won’t remember a single fish. But here, I know on the front end that it’s about more than the photo. It’s all up here,” he says, tapping his forehead, “where it should be. I don’t need another fish picture to show around the office.” An award-winning author and journalist, T. Edward Nickens is editor-at-large of Field & Stream, a contributing editor for Garden & Gun, and the editor-in-chief of Tail Fly Fishing Magazine.

*** The last bonefish landed with a fish-gripper at Flamingo Cay is mounted and hangs on a wall in the Flamingo Cay main lodge. It’s a 13.2-pound beast caught in the late 1990s by Roger Waters, lead singer of Pink Floyd, a BTT supporter, and a frequent visitor to Flamingo Cay. Under the bonefish mount, Waters left an inscription: “ALL IN ALL,” it reads, “IT’S JUST ANOTHER BONE ON THE WALL.” There likely won’t be any more. Years ago, Bethell removed

The 13-plus-pound bonefish landed by Roger Waters. Photo: T. Edward Nickens B O N E F I S H & T A R P O N J O U R N A L FA L L 2 0 2 6

2027 Artist of the Year

HARLEY BARTLETT

Harley Bartlett at work.

Late Afternoon Catch by Harley Bartlett. Oil on linen, 24 inches tall, 36 inches long,

cclaimed painter Harley Bartlett of Bartlett Fine Art Ltd. has been named the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust 2027 Artist of the Year. His original work, Late Afternoon Catch, will be available in Copley’s Winter Sale 2027, held online on February 19-20. This will be the 16th featured artwork Copley has sold to benefit BTT, raising many thousands of dollars for flats fishery conservation over the years. “In the 14 years that Steve O’Brien and I have been working on the Artist of the Year awards we have mostly selected painters, carvers, and sculptors whose works we know and, in many cases, have collected,” said Bill Legg, who chairs BTT’s Artist of the Year Selection Committee. “At the same time, we have kept an eye out for artists who are relatively new to the saltwater scene. About 18 months ago, I began to see works by Harley show up in online gallery sales. I was intrigued, so I called to talk him into participating. Didn’t take much persuasion as he was more than happy to help support BTT.” Bartlett brings a long and varied career in the arts to his selection. Over the past three decades, he has worked extensively in commercial and fine art, maintaining a studio producing murals and paintings for the hospitality industry while exhibiting in galleries since the late 1980s. His commissioned work includes portraits of business leaders and a state governor, along with largescale decorative and ecclesiastical murals. Landscape painting, however, has remained the foundation of his fine art practice. In recent years, Bartlett has shifted increasing attention toward sporting art, a direction shaped by a lifelong connection to the outdoors. Influenced by time spent hunting in the Adirondacks and a longstanding familiarity with freshwater fishing, he began to explore sporting subjects more deliberately beginning around 2013. Early works focused on upland bird hunting and trout fishing, gradually evolving toward broader interpretations of the sporting landscape. That evolution ultimately led him to the world of saltwater flats fishing. Encouraged through gallery connections to explore marine subject matter more directly, Bartlett began studying bonefish and 48

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the environments in which they live, eventually traveling to Florida to experience the flats firsthand. The result was a shift in both subject and focus, drawn to the light, water, and expansive skies that define the fishery. As Bartlett has described, flats fishing offers a convergence of everything he values in painting—light, movement, and atmosphere. “Flats fishing, as a subject, has all that I love in picture painting—big sky, water with intense color, and sportsmen doing stuff,” he noted. “I promptly got down to Florida and got myself out on the water.” His work since has continued to draw on those experiences, translating the southern waters into compositions shaped by direct observation and sustained engagement. Throughout his career, Bartlett has cited the influence of historic American painters such as Winslow Homer, Frank Weston Benson, and Ogden M. Pleissner, artists known for their ability to combine atmosphere, narrative, and direct observation. That lineage is evident in his current marine and sporting compositions, which balance realism with a strong sense of mood and place. Today, Bartlett divides his time between commissioned murals, gallery paintings, and portrait work, while continuing to develop his sporting and marine subjects. The flats, in particular, have become an ongoing source of inspiration—an environment where shifting light and water movement provide constant variation. His selection as BTT’s 2027 Artist of the Year reflects both his expanding engagement with saltwater themes and the committee’s interest in artists who bring fresh perspective to marine conservation subjects. The commissioned work to be presented at Copley’s Winter Sale will continue a tradition that connects fine art with the conservation of vital fisheries and coastal ecosystems. As Bartlett’s work continues to evolve within the sporting art tradition, his focus on marine waters underscores a growing commitment to capturing the beauty and complexity of the flats— landscapes that remain central to his artistic practice and to the mission of Bonefish & Tarpon Trust.

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BTT Events

13th Annual Florida Keys Dinner & Circle of Honor Inductions

onefish & Tarpon Trust inducted renowned Florida fishing guides, Captain Carl Ball and the late Captain Jose Wejebe, into the BTT Circle of Honor on April 16 during the 13th Annual Florida Keys Dinner at Cheeca Lodge & Spa in Islamorada, Florida. The special program was emceed by Garden & Gun contributing editor T. Edward Nickens and featured tributes from Captain Rob Fordyce, legendary angler Chico Fernandez, and Chris Peterson, owner of Hell’s Bay Boatworks. All event proceeds benefited the BTT George Hommell Florida Keys Habitat Fund, which supports local conservation efforts. Ball received the Flats Stewardship Award in recognition of his enduring commitment to the conservation of Florida’s flats fishery. A Fort Lauderdale native, Ball has spent three decades guiding anglers on South Florida’s flats, inspired by a lifelong passion for fishing instilled by his grandfather. Through AWOL Fishing Charters—named after his grandfather’s boat—he has introduced countless anglers to bonefish, tarpon, permit, redfish, and snook, earning a reputation for skillful guiding and deep knowledge of the flats. Ball’s dedication to fishing naturally evolved into a commitment to conservation. Among the first South Florida guides to work with scientists from the University of Miami and later BTT, he has played a leading role in tagging and tracking bonefish, tarpon, and permit, contributing critical data through dart tags, acoustic tags, and DNA sampling. His efforts have significantly advanced scientific understanding of flats species and supported improved fisheries management. A vocal advocate for healthy habitat and water quality, Ball speaks candidly about the loss of seagrass and declining fish populations, emphasizing the urgent need to protect and restore the Everglades and South Florida’s coastal ecosystems. Captain Wejebe was posthumously honored with the 2026 Curt Gowdy Memorial Media Award, presented annually to those who inspire saltwater conservation through media and the arts. As the creator and host of the hit TV show Spanish Fly, Wejebe left an indelible mark on the world of sport fishing and outdoor media. Debuting on ESPN2 in 1995, the program followed Wejebe’s fishing adventures across the globe, reaching millions of viewers and transcending traditional angling audiences. Wejebe’s passion for saltwater fishing inspired countless viewers to embrace the outdoors while fostering a lasting appreciation for marine conservation. Born in Havana, Cuba, in 1958, Wejebe immigrated to Miami as a child after his family fled Fidel Castro’s regime. He developed a love for fishing and the marine environment at an early age and went on to become a highly respected professional guide, mentored by angling pioneers Stu Apte, Flip Pallot, and Lefty Kreh. Beyond his professional achievements, Wejebe was committed to giving back, donating significant time and television coverage to organizations including the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Wounded Warriors, and Big Brothers/Big Sisters. Following his tragic death in a plane crash in Everglades City in 2012, his daughter Krissy, along with friends and colleagues, established the Jose Wejebe Memorial Foundation to honor his legacy of conservation,

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Captain Carl Ball accepts the Flats Stewardship Award.

On behalf of her father, Krissy Wejebe accepts the Curt Gowdy Memorial Media Award from BTT President & CEO Jim McDuffie with emcee T. Edward Nickens.

education, and making fishing dreams come true. Captains Ball and Wejebe are now enshrined in the BTT Circle of Honor alongside other legendary anglers, fishing guides, and conservation leaders. The Circle of Honor is housed in the Florida Keys History & Discovery Center in Islamorada and features an annually rotating exhibit about the honorees as well as educational content about the significance of the flats fishery.

BTT Chairman Evan Carruthers and Chelsy Quiram.

Capt. Carl Ball and Andy Mill.

Ward Wood and BTT Board Member Thorpe McKenzie.

Brian and Heidi Floyd (center) with Rob and Catherine Fordyce.

Chico Fernandez and Joel Moxey.

BTT Board Member and angling legend Stu Apte and friends.

Kaylee Fordyce, Ashley O’Brien, Mayte Espinel, and Brooke Austin.

Keys guides and anglers enjoy the evening.

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Tom Davidson Sr. Inducted into IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame

Tom Davidson Sr.

om Davidson Sr., Founding Chairman of Bonefish & Tarpon Trust, was inducted into the International Game Fish Association’s Fishing Hall of Fame on August 29, 2026, at Johnny Morris’ Wonders of Wildlife National Museum and Aquarium in Springfield, Missouri. The honor recognizes Davidson’s lifetime of leadership in fisheries conservation. Davidson began fishing the Florida Keys in the 1970s, developing a deep appreciation for the region’s bonefish and the unique ecosystem that supports them. For many years, the fishery appeared stable. By the early 1990s, however, a troubling pattern began to emerge. Each successive season yielded fewer bonefish landed by local guides and anglers. Then, in March of 1997, the decline became unmistakable. For weeks, the flats around Key Largo in the Upper Florida Keys were nearly devoid of bonefish. Seeking answers, Davidson turned to the scientific literature, expecting to find data on spawning behavior, juvenile habitat, population trends, and migration. Instead, he found a void. Because bonefish were not commercially harvested, they had received little formal study. There were no meaningful stock assessments, no comprehensive life-history research, and no baseline population data. For Davidson—a seasoned entrepreneur accustomed to addressing complex challenges through disciplined inquiry—the absence of information was as concerning as the decline itself. He responded decisively. Davidson contacted five fellow anglers—Russ Fisher, Dick Farmer, Roe Stamps, Mike Smith, and Joel Shepherd—and proposed that each contribute $10,000 to support a University of Miami research initiative. The objective was straightforward: gather existing knowledge and launch a bonefish tagging program to begin building the scientific foundation that did not yet exist. That initial commitment marked the beginning of what would become a transformative conservation effort. The group first organized as Bonefish Unlimited and soon joined forces with others focused on tarpon conservation, forming Bonefish & Tarpon Unlimited. As the mission broadened, the organization began to focus on permit as well and adopted the name Bonefish & Tarpon Trust while expanding its scope internationally. 52

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From the outset, Davidson established a principle that continues to define BTT’s work: effective conservation must be grounded in rigorous science. Early research symposia convened scientists to study bonefish, tarpon, and permit— species that had been surprisingly underexamined despite their ecological and economic importance. Under Davidson’s leadership as Chairman of the Board for nearly two decades, BTT evolved into a respected, science-driven conservation organization with global reach. The impact of Davidson’s vision has been substantial. BTTled research has identified and secured protections for critical spawning locations for bonefish in The Bahamas and the Florida Keys, advanced the understanding of the permit life cycle to conserve the species, and completed the largest tarpon tracking study in history, generating valuable data used to improve fishery management. Recognizing that these species traverse international boundaries, BTT expanded its work throughout The Bahamas and into Mexico, Belize, and Cuba. Scientific discovery consistently informed conservation action—strengthening resource management, advancing catch-and-release protections in Florida and Belize, and safeguarding and restoring vital bonefish habitat in The Bahamas. At the core of this work remains the question that galvanized Davidson in 1997: what caused the decline of the Florida Keys bonefish, and how can the fishery be restored? That objective continues to guide BTT’s work in the region today, which centers on cutting-edge research on bonefish spawning and genetics, and has expanded to include a suite of innovative studies on permit spawning, shark depredation, and the seasonal tarpon migration. These efforts are complemented by BTT’s science-based advocacy for clean water initiatives, Everglades restoration, and the protection of essential flats habitats. While restoration is an ongoing process, it is now supported by a depth of scientific understanding that was absent when Davidson began asking questions nearly three decades ago. Davidson’s induction into the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame recognizes more than personal achievement. It honors a legacy of institution-building and conservation leadership. A distinguished business executive and former Canadian Entrepreneur of the Year, Davidson founded and led multiple companies operating across North America and Europe and chaired prominent leadership organizations. He is also a board member of the Everglades Foundation, and served on the Florida Keys Marine Sanctuary Advisory Board and as VP Director of Sanctuary Friends of the Florida Keys. Among his many accomplishments, the founding of BTT stands as a lasting contribution to the future of flats fisheries. What began as a response to declining bonefish in the Florida Keys has grown into an organization that consistently advances fisheries science and translates knowledge into meaningful conservation outcomes. The IGFA Hall of Fame recognizes individuals who leave a lasting imprint on the world of sportfishing. Tom Davidson’s imprint is evident not only in his personal achievements, but in the enduring organization he helped build and the fisheries it continues to conserve. On behalf of BTT’s board, staff, scientists, partners, and supporters, we congratulate Tom Davidson on this well-deserved honor and thank him for the vision and leadership that continue to guide our mission.

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