Bonefish & Tarpon Trust

Kellie Ralston, BTT Vice President for Conservation and Public Policy, has been reappointed by Governor Ron DeSantis to the Northwest Florida Water Management District. Ralston, a fifth-generation Floridian, is grateful for the opportunity to continue to serve the people of Florida in this role. Before joining BTT in 2021, Ralston served as the Southeast Fisheries Policy Director for the American Sportfishing Association, and earlier worked at Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the Florida House of Representatives, and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. She is currently appointed to the Environmental Regulation Commission, is Vice Chair of the Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee, and is a member of the American Fisheries Advisory Committee.

There’s nothing like the love of fishing to bring together friends old and new! BTT staff attending #ICAST2024 had an epic week catching up with many of our great conservation partners. #TheFloridaBoat from Floyd Skiffs sparked many conversations about how we can #WinBackOurWater here in Florida. We had a blast with our friends at SIMMS who once again hosted an amazing happy hour fundraiser benefiting BTT’s Florida Keys Initiative. Under Armour Fish unveiled the new Shoreman Deckboot, donating the proceeds of a flash sale to BTT’s Juvenile Tarpon Habitat Initiative. We look forward to ICAST 2025! Until then, we have a lot of important work to accomplish together for the conservation of our flats fishery and the habitats that support it.

Some of the five restoration projects BTT and partners have in the works across Florida are sprawling in size and scope—some are relatively bite-size. But they’re all part of a much bigger picture, of a better, biodiverse future. And there's no slowing us down: “I’ve got six more potential projects on the docket [and] I’ve got over 300 identified juvenile tarpon habitat locations throughout Florida," says JoEllen Wilson, BTT's Juvenile Tarpon Habitat Program Manager. Read the article by Alexandra Marvar in the Bonefish & Tarpon Journal: https://lnkd.in/ehRTKBMh

Earlier this week a group of Bahamian ocean experts, including Rashema Ingraham, BTT's Caribbean Program Director, came together in New York City for a World Oceans Week panel discussion hosted by Builders Vision. Attendees learned how The Bahamas is uniquely positioned to lead the transition to a sustainable, innovative and profitable blue economy. https://lnkd.in/e6X8D5VW

Our work to identify and protect bonefish spawning sites in the Florida Keys continues. Learn more about our significant progress in Keys News. https://lnkd.in/eGGN3qwr

Tarpon have long been closely associated with Florida, the waters of the Gulf Coast, and the Caribbean. But for decades a select few knew about world-class tarpon fishing to be had in the Mid-Atlantic and upper South from Chesapeake Bay to Georgia’s saltmarsh-lined coast. Now, many of those early tarpon pioneers are still working today to advocate for better management of tarpon populations and the habitats on which they rely. T. Edward Nickens tells the little-known story of the pioneers of tarpon fishing in Georgia, the Carolinas, and Virginia in the latest Bonefish & Tarpon Journal. Read the article here: https://lnkd.in/ejB3QwU3

What could be causing the spinning fish phenomenon in the Florida Keys? The latest information is available at BTT.org/Spinning-Fish Watch the May 2024 live update from BTT and collaborating researchers: https://lnkd.in/exa79PFZ #SpinningFish

The 11th Annual Keys Dinner & Circle of Honor Ceremony was a night to be remembered, as more than 350 passionate anglers, conservationists, and supporters joined us to celebrate the lives of three conservation heroes– Captain Rick Ruoff, and posthumously Captains Travis Holeman and Joe Gonzalez. We thank writer T. Edward Nickens, Captain Steve Huff, and Shawn Hamilton, Secretary of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, for providing an entertaining and inspiring program. And we’re grateful to Floyd Skiff Co for their dedication to BTT's conservation mission as we kicked off The Florida Boat Sweepstakes. With so many longtime friends and supporters gathered together, we see a bright future for The Florida Keys fisheries and beyond. See more photos from this special evening: https://lnkd.in/e5a_EXve #BonefishTarponTrust #BringingSciencetotheFight #ConservationHero #TheFloridaBoat #WinBackOurWater

We are thrilled to welcome Bahamian conservation leader Rashema Ingraham as BTT's Caribbean Program Director! Ingraham has served for the past eight years as Executive Director of Waterkeepers Bahamas. During her tenure, she co-founded the coalition "Our Islands, Our Future," to oppose oil exploration in The Bahamas, developed new youth education programs, and played a pivotal role in establishing the Bahamas Mangrove Alliance, a multi-organizational effort to restore mangroves in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian. Based in Freeport, Grand Bahama, Ingraham will lead BTT’s Bahamas Program, focusing on government affairs, public policy, community engagement, and other high impact work in pursuit of the organization’s conservation mission. Beyond The Bahamas, she will be an integral part of BTT’s regional team working in Belize, Mexico and other Caribbean nations. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eRm3kib9

Happy Earth Day! 🌎 BTT celebrated Earth Day in The Bahamas this weekend with a planting event in East Grand Bahama. Over 3,200 mangroves were planted by students and local bonefishing guides!🌱🇧🇸 BTT's planting crew was joined by students from Waterkeepers Bahamas, Jack Hayward High School, and Bishop Michael Eldon School. This planting brought the grand total of BTT's Mangrove Restoration Project to over 70,000 seedlings, revitalizing this valuable flats habitat. Together with our Bahamas Mangrove Alliance partners Waterkeepers Bahamas and Perry Institute for Marine Science (PIMS), we are well on our way to our goal of planting more than 100,000 mangroves by the end of this year! Learn more and support the project: https://lnkd.in/gNENvnpp https://lnkd.in/gHNcmeUn