9 minute read
Setting the Hook
Bonefish & Tarpon Trust celebrates its 25th anniversary this year, and what a long way we’ve come!
On the day that Tom Davidson and a small circle of visionary anglers established BTT on the flats of Key Largo, very little was known about flats species. Motivated by concerning declines in Keys bonefish, our founders passed the cap to fund some of the first research studies on the species, including the first tagging project to map bonefish home ranges.
Those steps taken in the late 1990s began piecing together a puzzle that has been substantially built out over the years thanks to BTT’s research. We’ve compiled volumes of new knowledge about slam species—their home ranges, movement patterns, spawning behavior, reproductive biology, and life cycle as well as the myriad threats to a sustainable fishery.
BTT has applied this new knowledge gained over the past 25 years to the important work of flats conservation, from the improved management of bonefish, tarpon and permit fisheries to the restoration and conservation of critical habitats in the US and beyond. And in doing so, the organization has grown from its grassroots beginnings in the Florida Keys to become the global leader in flats science and conservation. These accomplishments give us much to celebrate. But as T. Edward Nickens writes in his fine feature article, “A Silver Celebration,” milestone anniversaries should be more than moments in time. For organizations such as BTT, they should also inspire a vision for how to pursue the mission in the future. We agree! On this occasion, BTT affirms its commitment to restore and conserve critical flats habitats in the US, the Bahamas, Belize and Mexico; to improve water quality through science and advocacy; and to strengthen fisheries management across the ranges of bonefish, tarpon and permit in this hemisphere.
We are already making significant progress toward these objectives, which is evident in these pages. Take, for instance, water quality.
BTT has been engaged in the fight to restore America’s Everglades for many years, including advocacy that helped secure authorization and funding of the EAA Reservoir—the critical centerpiece of a plan to store, clean and convey fresh water south to Florida Bay, the heart of Florida’s multi-billion-dollar recreational fishery. But water quality needs in Florida go well beyond the Everglades. A booming population and a water infrastructure outstripped by today’s demands introduce new threats to water quality, which are felt in every region in the state, from Pensacola to Key West.
As reported by Alexandra Marvar in “Are We Making Our Fish Dopesick?,” our collaborating scientists at Florida International University have discovered an invisible, insidious threat in the form of pharmaceutical contaminants. In a series of announcements earlier this year, BTT and FIU released the findings of the study, which sampled 93 bonefish in Biscayne Bay and the Florida Keys. A total of 58 different drugs were detected, with an average of seven drugs per fish. Antidepressants, antibiotics, blood pressure medications, pain relievers, even opioids. Not a single fish was clean! The problem isn’t
Carl Navarre, Chairman Jim McDuffie, President
unique to bonefish. Contaminants were also detected in bonefish prey and will likely be found in other marine life—fishes, crabs, and lobster. The source of these contaminants? Wastewater and a water infrastructure no longer up to the task. Over the next five years, BTT will advocate for programs to reduce nutrient pollution and remove harmful pharmaceutical contaminants from our waterways, all while continuing to support expedited restoration of the Everglades.
BTT’s ongoing advocacy to improve water quality fits hand in glove with our rapidly expanding program to restore and conserve coastal habitats. As reported in this issue, BTT recently received a $250,000 grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, which will be matched by other funds, to plan coastal habitat restoration on Florida’s Gulf Coast. This follows our successful juvenile tarpon habitat restorations in the region as well as creek and mangrove restorations in the Bahamas.
In the newly funded project, BTT is working collaboratively with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to restore tidal flows to mangrove swamps and salt marshes in the Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in Collier County, Florida. Success will prevent the loss of mangroves and provide more habitat for fish and other wildlife—and demonstrate how minimal alterations guided by science can provide major ecological benefits. This holds great promise for its application in similar sites across Florida as well as in damaged juvenile tarpon habitats throughout the Caribbean and Central America.
In addition to water quality and habitat restoration, BTT has made great strides in improving fishery management in Florida and elsewhere across the Caribbean Sea. Yet much work remains for us in the years ahead. BTT has committed to funding a monitoring project at Western Dry Rocks and three other Keys permit spawning sites to ensure data are available to guide future decisions by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission on the spawning season, nofishing closure at WDR. And in Mexico, the first assessment of the flats fishery’s annual economic impact has been completed through BTT’s auspices, as reported in Chris Santella’s article in this issue. Such assessments have been important motivations in other countries for strengthening conservation-oriented management.
All that we have accomplished over these past 25 years—and the vision that these accomplishments frame for the future—would not have been possible without your generous support and advocacy for the fishery. It’s customary to celebrate the 25th with gifts of silver— we hope you’ll find yours on a flat this spring!
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Kellie Ralston has been appointed Vice President for Conservation and Public Policy at Bonefish & Tarpon Trust.
Ralston served previously as the Southeast Fisheries Policy Director for the American Sportfishing Association.
“We are excited to welcome Kellie to our team,” said BTT President and CEO Jim McDuffie. “Her knowledge, experience and leadership will have an immediate impact on BTT’s efforts to conserve coastal habitats, improve water quality, and strengthen fisheries management.”
Prior to her tenure at ASA, Ralston worked at Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the Florida House of Representatives, and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. In these roles, she was involved in a range of environmental, water quality, and fisheriesrelated issues.
“I am thrilled to join BTT’s respected team, where strong science helps inform policy,” said Ralston. “I look forward to using my experience at the state and federal levels to achieve conservation goals that benefit our fisheries and the environment.”
Ralston also serves on the Governing Board of the Northwest Florida Water Management District, an appointment made by Governor Ron DeSantis in 2020, and
BTT Welcomes Noah Valenstein to the Board of Directors
Noah Valenstein, former Secretary of Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection, was elected to the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust Board of Directors in December.
“It is an honor to serve alongside such a dedicated board and focus on protecting Florida’s fishing legacy,” Valenstein said. “The restoration of Florida’s water resources requires a science-based and collaborative approach, and Bonefish & Tarpon Trust has shown its commitment to both.”
Valenstein, who was first appointed to the DEP post in 2017 by Governor Rick Scott and subsequently re-appointed by Governor Ron DeSantis, also served as the state’s Chief Resilience Officer. During his tenure, Valenstein championed water quality improvements, Everglades and springs restoration, coastal resilience, and conservation of Florida’s iconic lands.
A founding partner in the consulting firm Brightwater Strategies Group, PLLC, Valenstein was appointed by Governor DeSantis in November 2021 to the newly formed Biscayne Bay Commission. He also serves as a Presidential Fellow for The Water School at Florida Gulf Coast University and held past leadership positions on the United States Coral Reef Task Force, the United States Everglades Task Force, and the Environmental Council of the States.
Whitney Wemett Joins BTT Staff
Bonefish & Tarpon Trust is pleased to welcome Whitney Wemett as Florida Keys Field Technician. Whitney grew up on the water in the Finger Lakes Region of Upstate New York and received her Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting and Environmental Studies from Stonehill College in Massachusetts. Whitney’s passion for island communities led her to work with local NGOs and fishers in Madagascar to establish science-based regulations to protect local fisheries and subsistent fishing practices in the island chain.
Based in Islamorada, Whitney is a trained scientific diver and PADI Divemaster, experienced mariner, and an environmental writer committed to communicating science to the public. Throughout the Keys, Whitney leads grassroots campaigns, advocacy, and community-based ocean conservation programs with Surfrider Florida Keys, where she currently serves as Vice-Chair of the Executive Board. At the helm of the recent Key West cruise ship campaign, Whitney has worked with local fisherman, the Safer, Cleaner Ships Committee and her local community to defend ocean livelihoods and the fragile marine ecosystem the Keys calls home.
As the Florida Keys Field Technician, Wemett will combine her previous fisheries management and field experience to
Kelli Ralston NOAA Fisheries’ Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee that advises the Secretary of Commerce. She holds Bachelor and Master’s degrees in biology from Florida State University.
Noah Valenstein
“Noah has had a profound impact on the conservation of Florida’s natural resources,” said BTT President and CEO Jim McDuffie. “The leadership, knowledge and commitment he brings to the BTT Board of Directors will ensure that we make the most of our opportunities to improve water quality, conserve coastal habitats, and strengthen fisheries management.
Whitney Wemett support the search for bonefish spawning areas in the Florida Keys.
