Abstract or Keywords
Abstract: Florida has some of the highest marine recreational fishing rates in the country and is well known as a recreational fishing “paradise,” where opportunities abound for excellent fishing. However, most estimates suggest that only around 30% of these fishers are women. Raising women’s participation in fishing is a policy goal in Florida and more broadly, since doing so would expose many more to the documented benefits to wellbeing and cross-species connections that fishing provides. In order to shed more light on the pathways women take into fishing (or are dissuaded from fishing), our research examines women’s engagement with recreational fishing in both real-life and online fishing spaces. Drawing on in-situ interviews with women fishers in the Tampa Bay region and social media analysis of women fishers nationally, we discuss the factors that may affect women’s decisions to engage in recreational fishing. Our preliminary findings suggest that while actual fishing experiences are often positive for women, their criteria for what makes a successful fishing trip can differ from men’s. Further, mixed positive and negative messaging on social media may complicate women’s assessment of recreational fishing in terms of its safety for women, attitudes toward new fishers, and levels of skill required to participate.