KEY WEST, Fla. – Florida wildlife officials are investigating what they say is the illegal harvest of nearly 300 queen conchs from waters off the Florida Keys, and they are asking the public for help in identifying those responsible.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said they were recently alerted to the discovery of hundreds of empty snail shells at a rental property near Key West.
Investigators believe the conchs were illegally harvested for their meat sometime between July 7 and July 10, but the responsible party has still not been located.
The agency has not released the identity of any suspects and said that the queen conchs are protected under Florida law because of declining populations caused by overharvesting and habitat destruction.
Biologists say queen conchs are bottom dwellers that feed on algae in seagrass beds and play an important role in the natural ecosystem.
NOAA Fisheries reports the species can grow up to 12 inches long and live for as many as 30 years.
Photos of seized queen conchs.
(FWC / FOX Weather)
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The marine snails are found throughout the Caribbean Sea, around the Florida Keys and near Bermuda.
Although queen conch meat is considered a delicacy and is featured in some seafood restaurants, their supply comes from farms in the Caribbean and Bahamas, not Florida waters.
Through aquaculture, harvesters raise larvae in hatcheries and release them once they grow larger or continue raising them in enclosed environments.
In Florida, harvesting queen conchs from the wild is a second-degree misdemeanor punishable by fines and possible jail time.
Photo of a queen conch
(NOAA)
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FWC officials are seeking eyewitness accounts from anyone who may have observed suspicious activity or have video of the property or surrounding waters that could help identify suspects.
Anyone with information is urged to contact the FWC’s Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-3922 or submit an anonymous tip through the agency’s online system.
The case is one of the largest in recent memory, with most illegal harvest cases involving only a few dozen of the mollusks.
Queen conch habitat zone map
(NOAA)
