FWC News Release
Contact: Marty Hale or Joy Hill, 352-732-1225

Beginning Dec. 1, it will be against the law to keep any bass from Rodman Reservoir in Putnam and Marion counties – at least temporarily. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is implementing the temporary ban on possessing black bass, which includes largemouth bass, during the 2007-08 Rodman Reservoir Drawdown Project.

The no-harvest rule will go into effect at 12:01 a.m., Wednesday, Dec. 1, and end at 12:01 a.m., on April 1, 2008. However, the rule could be rescinded sooner if conditions warrant.

“What ‘no-harvest’ means is that anyone who catches a bass at Rodman Reservoir must immediately release it back into the lake,” said Marty Hale, biological administrator for the FWC’s Division of Freshwater Fisheries in Ocala. “They may not put it in a livewell or hang it on a stringer. They must take it off the hook and immediately put it back in the water.”

The area includes all waters from the County Road 316 Bridge to the George Kirkpatrick Dam, the barge canal to Buckman Locks, Deep Creek to County Road 310, and Orange Creek to State Road 315.