Registration for anglers wishing to compete in the 2012 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens will take place during the month of November.

Today's publishings in the Federal Register will contain a finding from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service stating the saltmarsh topminnow, a small grey-green Gulf Coast fish, is facing such severe threats that the Fish and Wildlife Service will conduct a status review to determine if the species warrants listing under the Endangered Species Act.

Collegiate anglers throughout the country may begin registering online for the 2011 BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship. Registration will close on May 1 and the final field will be announced on May 5.

The sportfishing community is asking the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to rule on the side of scientific fish and wildlife population management and dismiss a petition filed in August by the Center for Biological Diversity and four other groups requesting that the Agency ban the manufacture and sale of lead in fishing tackle under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).

As the pending Gulf Restoration Plan is being produced The Billfish Foundation is encouraging recreational anglers and boaters, especially those in the Gulf states most affected by the April 20 oil disaster, to urge the government to include the sportfishing segment in the plan.

For those who cannot make it to Las Vegas from July 14-16 for ICAST, WFN: World Fishing Network, North America's only 24-hour fishing lifestyle network, is offering a front row seat to the premier event of the sportfishing industry.

Recreational fishing industry veteran Steve Levi has been appointed brand manager of BoatUS Angler , the membership and services program for boat-owning anglers, a division of Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS).

Anglers from across the Texas Gulf Coast and surrounding regions will converge on Rockport, Texas, on June 12-13 for the second Texas Division regular-season event for both the IFA Redfish Tour Presented by Cabela's and the IFA Kayak Fishing Tour Presented by Hobie Fishing.

Fishing conditions on the Red River improved just slightly with wind and cloud cover Thursday, and that was all Waco, Texas, angler Russell Parrish needed to grab the Day 1 lead in the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Central Open. His 18-pound, 10-ounce haul included the day's heaviest bass, a 6-14 lunker.

Between the ongoing oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico and the vast areas of state and federal waters now closed to fishing, without immediate financial assistance, many of the region's recreational fishing-dependent businesses may not be in business by the 4th of July.