STOCK ISLAND - A man who some called the most conscientious and knowledgeable fisherman in the Lower Keys and the patriarch of the Dry Tortugas died Monday morning, after a battle with cancer.

Surrounded by family and friends, Peter Gladding, 56, died at his Stock Island home.

Gladding, a revered hand-liner and conservationist, was diagnosed several months ago with an aggressive form of cancer that could not be stopped by radiation and chemotherapy, said fellow commercial fisherman Don DeMaria.

Gladding will be honored with a posthumous lifetime achievement award by the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council next week. He also recently received a life achievement award from the National Coral Reef Task Force for his "significant contribution" to coral reef conservation and work that was "instrumental" in the creation of the Tortugas Ecological Reserve.

"He was an excellent example of the ethical fishermen," DeMaria said. "If you wanted to learn responsible fishing, he would teach you. We used to say that the pelicans followed him around to look for bait."

Gladding had worked with the sanctuary on several projects, most notably the creation of the Tortugas Ecological Reserve, serving on a committee called Tortugas 2000. Gladding was one of the first to discover a snapper and grouper spawning ground and he worked hard to make sure the area was closed to fishing. In doing so, he gave up one of his best spots, Riley's Hump.

"The long-term health of the reef and sustaining the fishery was more important to him," DeMaria said. "He got a lot of grief for that. But it wouldn't have been done right if he wasn't involved."

Riley's Hump was picked by the working group as one of the first places to be considered because it is upstream of the Florida Keys reef tract and a known spawning area for mutton snappers, yellowtail snappers, gray snappers, red grouper, black grouper and blue runners. Large schools of king mackerel frequent the hump.

Gladding understood ecosystem-based management long before the term became the buzz in the fisheries conservation world.

"With the closure of Riley's Hump, I feel fish stocks will rebound because an increase in spawning stock biomass will result in larval dispersal up the Keys and eastern seaboard. For the last 30 years, Riley's Hump has had to endure extreme amounts of fishing pressure by every type of gear used by commercial fishermen myself included. I've seen a decline in fish abundance in this area. It needs protection," Gladding wrote in a report for the National Fisheries Conservation Center.

Researchers say Gladding bridged the world of science and fishing, despite his lack of schooling.

"Peter might not have come from an academic field, but he knew so much about fish behavior and movement patterns," said Felicia Coleman, a marine biologist with Florida State University and researcher of grouper populations. "I remember when we first met. He was a real powerhouse. He said I'll take you scientists out and show you what's out there. I said, I want this guy on my side. He put his heart and soul into it. He came out swinging for the oceans. He was a huge supporter. I miss him already."

"Peter was literally one of these guys that was bigger than life," sanctuary Superintendent Billy Causey said. "Peter is one of my all-time heroes. He stood up for what he believed in and did it with honor and respect. He was the most dedicated commercial fishermen when it came to conservation. He was tenacious."

Gladding was born in Bristol, R.I., and his parents took the family to Fort Lauderdale in 1953. The trip was a 32-day adventure aboard what was thought to be the oldest motorized boat still in use in the United States, called the Salty Sea. The boat was built in 1822. The family moved to Key West in 1954 and started a salvage business. The family grew up on the water, and Peter and his brothers left school at an early age to work on the boat. Aside from a military tour in Vietnam, his life was focused on fishing.

"We had a different kind of upbringing. We learned a lot," Gladding's sister Rae Walsh said.

Gladding fished the Dry Tortugas area for more than 30 years, in the later years on his boat the Alexis M. He fished with "Cuban yo-yo" hand-line reels.

"He made hand-lining a true art form," said Jack Sobel, the Ocean Conservancy's director of strategic conservation science and policy. "I've rarely seen anyone up close and in person performing any physical activity with his level of skill and dexterity, much less any fishing activity, including fly-fishing. He will be missed."

Gladding's wife Mary and his first mate Richard plan to continue fishing the Alexis M., friends said.

Gladding is survived by his wife, sisters Rae Walsh and Carolyn, brothers Raymond, Nat and Paul, his dogs Woo and Rusty Puppy and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by a sister, Ruth Tindall.

A memorial service will be at 11 a.m. Sunday at the American Legion Post No. 28 on Stock Island.