Time to let 'em go again, boys and girls. 

Snook, that is. Twice a year — for three months in the summer and for six weeks in the winter — snook are afforded protection from being invited home (unwillingly) for dinner. The winter closure is necessary because snook are a tropical fish species susceptible to cold weather and low water temperatures. When the water gets too cool, snook get sluggish. When it gets into the 60s, snook will stop feeding altogether. If the water temperature gets into the 50s, it can actually kill snook.

It's been awhile since we saw that, but when we did, it was catastrophic. It was January 2010 and temperatures across Florida remained below 50 degrees for 10 consecutive days. Snook seemingly froze. Suddenly, from Titusville to Flamingo, including the Keys, snook which couldn't escape to deeper, warmer water began floating up dead.

Fishing targets:Pompano pandemonium: How the pursuit of one small fish has an entire coastline going crazy

Remember the run?:Mullet run is insane off Indian River County; Tarpon, snook, jacks & sharks love it

Missing manatees:Manatee feeding was to begin Wednesday. The only thing missing? Manatees.

It created a moratorium on harvest for the next year and longer in half of Florida. It's been awhile since we had a good old fashioned hard freeze. Sometimes that can be a good thing.

This winter is scheduled to be a La Niña winter. That means warmer and drier than normal. I doubt any snook will freeze to death this year.

Closures in effect:  Anglers are reminded about three fishery harvest closures currently underway.

For complete fishing regulations in Florida go to MyFWC.com.

Offshore: The manta rays can be seen cruising the shallows, at least on the calm days. It may wind up being too windy the next few days to get out and find the mantas. The ones anglers have observed have not been accompanied by the cobia. At least not yet. Snapper fishing has been the go to target for anglers. Find muttons and mangroves in 70-90 feet of water. Some king mackerel and triggerfish are being caught in the same spots. 

Inshore: Big redfish are feeding on crabs during the outgoing tides and can be caught on crabs or live croaker. Snook are staged on the reef around the jetty in Sebastian Inlet, and are also being caught around the bridges in Vero Beach and on mangrove points south of town.

Freshwater: Bass fishing is steady at Stick Marsh and Headwaters Lake on lipless crank baits, spinnerbaits and wild shiners. Anglers fishing for specks are finding a slow bite in the canals and near the culvert pipes using minnows and small jigs.

Offshore: Anglers fishing the offshore wrecks are finding pods of bait being harassed by schools of bonitos. But do you know what's in those schools? Blackfin tuna and sailfish, too. Trolling ballyhoo works best. The party boats really got on the snapper, too. This weekend's 3-4 foot seas may not allow for the best snapper fishing, but when it lies down again, get after it.

Inshore: Trout can be caught around the mangrove points in 2-4 feet of water Snook action has been hit and miss around structure on jigs. Tripletail can be caught around crab trap pots with live shrimp. If you snag the line, remember it's illegal to handle the trap. 

Surf: Anglers are doing their due diligence for pompano and whiting. Calm shorebreak early in the week enabled a few to get caught at Hutchinson Island beaches. It may not be great conditions the next few days to surf fish for pomps.

Offshore: A few mahi mahi and wahoo have been caught in deep spots like Push Button Hill and over the deep wrecks like the Wickstrom and Glasrud. Snapper fishing was pretty steady along the ledges in 70 feet of water. Sailfish are scarce right now. Why? Because it's sailfish tournament season, of course.

Inshore: Tarpon fishing is steady on live mullet in and around the waters of the St. Lucie Inlet and Crossroads. Snook can be caught around the bridges. Sheepshead and black drum are being caught around the Roosevelt on clams and oysters. 

Cast spinnerbaits around the Kissimmee grass and eel grass beds. Wild shiners are producing the most consistent bite, as usual. Look for fish on the edges to be on the beds with the next full or new moon ph

Ed Killer is TCPalm's outdoors writer. Sign up for his and other weekly newsletters at profile.tcpalm.com/newsletters/manage. Friend Ed on Facebook at Ed Killer, follow him on Twitter @tcpalmekiller or email him at ed.killer@tcpalm.com.