2024 National Recreational Fishing Highlights

NOAA Fisheries' accomplishments and highlights in recreational fisheries and fishing.

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A view from a satellite over Earth’s ocean and an aerial view of a blue whale A view from a satellite over Earth’s ocean and an aerial view of a blue whale.
Dozens of coral fragments hang from horizontal criss-crossed poles attached to a thicker vertical pole rising from the seafloor. The underwater background is bright blue. Coral fragments hang from a nursery tree in the Johnston Applied Marine Sciences' nursery in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Credit: Victoria Barker/NOAA
Flower Garden Banks Reef Scene A Spanish hogfish (left) and yellowtail damselfish (right) peek out from a reef in the Gulf of Mexico. Credit: Emma Hickerson/NOAA
Two men spray baskets of oysters on a boat. Oyster growers harvest farmed shellfish from the Damariscotta River in Maine. NOAA has awarded several grants to small businesses working to develop new tools to advance sustainable U.S. aquaculture. (Image credit: C. Katalinas/ Maine Sea Grant)
Researchers in hard hats and vests use a pulley system to lower a glider into the water off the back of a research ship. Other researchers sit in a black raft floating in the water behind the boat. Deploying a glider off the side of a ship. Credit: NOAA Fisheries