Ed Mitchell Outdoors

Charlotte Harbor is in Trouble

In 2013, I moved to Punta Gorda, Florida. At that time, Charlotte Harbor was listed as a pristine estuary, perhaps the healthiest in the state. That’s no longer the case as this article points out https://www.bonefishtarpontrust.org/blog/2020-12-02-massive-algae-bloom-impacts-charlotte-harbor-how-close-is-florida-to-the-proverbial-cliff/.

Many of Florida’s coastal waterways have serious water quality concerns. Concerns that Florida lawmakers have failed to address. While naturally occurring, red tide (Karenia brevis) blooms have strengthened in recent years, most likely due to coastal eutrophication. Along with that issue, toxic blue-green algae has  made bold headlines, especially in Southwestern Florida. Both issues are not only killing enormous amounts of marine life, they threaten tourism and home values. (more)

Green Algae November 2018

Between 2013 and 2019, I was on the water in Charlotte Harbor, often on a daily basis. I poled the flats on a standup kayak. Staked out and waded for hours.  This afforded me first-hand visual contact with the water and the bottom. During that time I witnessed a decline in water quality. Red tide, typically a two or three  week event in late fall, lasted a year 2017-2018. Along with it, green algae began to invade the flats I fished. This thick wool-like algae covered the bottom in areas, smothering the turtle grass beds which are an essential part of the ecosystem in Charlotte Harbor.

Floating Algae 2018

Cleaning up Florida’s coastal water ways is a herculean task that requires entire regions to rethink how they control both point and nonpoint source runoff. This implies a comprehensive approach, involving all parties from town planners, zoning boards, water resource engineers, marine biologists, natural resource mangers, developers, contractors, conservation advocacy groups, and above all the public.  Why do you need everyone at the table? Because only with universal cooperation can you make a truly effective plan. A plan that investigates the entire watershed and identifies all the problems. In Charlotte Harbor that means examining up both the Peace and Myakka Rivers. Some communities have already taken action to control the amount of fertilizer being used. One step in the right direction, but much more is needed. It will take widespread cooperation, gobs of money, and time to fix. Let’s hope the people of Florida are up to the task.

Tailing Reds in Pine Island Sound

My friend Dave and his buddy Andy caught some nice “tailing” redfish in
Pine Island Sound. If you’re unfamiliar with Pine Island Sound, it sits behind three islands -Sanibel, Captiva, and Cayo Costa – off the Southwest Florida coast. This is a pretty and well-known fishing destination for not only redfish but snook, and tarpon.

Dave with a Nice Redfish

Look at their faces! These dudes are happy campers. And why the hell not? Hunting for “tailing” reds is a wonderful game, full of challenges and pure excitement. Nice going guys. If I was there I’d buy you a beer.

Pine Island Sound benefits from its direct connection to the Gulf of Mexico. Water pouring places such Redfish and Captiva Pass help keep the Sound fairly clean. So the turtle grass beds here are in good shape. And as you likely realize, these grass beds are an essential part of this ecosystem. Without them the entire food chain would rapidly decline as it is doing next door in Charlotte Harbor. We’ll talk about that growing problem in the next post.

Are Menhaden Making a Comeback?

Many years ago menhaden were prolific along the shores of Long Island Sound. So abundant that mass die offs occured in some back bays due to low oxygen. I kid you not. That all changed in 1993 when the menhaden population in Long Island Sound crashed. And not surprisingly, here in Connecticut, our fishery was dramatically altered.  After all menhaden are a critical part of the food chain for both bass and blues. Bluefish responded by moving offshore. And stripers began migrating up the Connecticut River to feed on shad and herring.

Menhaden in the Lower Connecticut

Since then menhaden have returned to Connecticut shores in some years, but unfortunately never like the good old days. That maybe about to change. Yesterday I saw a large number of adult menhaden in the lower Connecticut River. Are they making a comeback? Maybe. Sadly there were no bass or blues feeding on them. Both of those populations are not in poor shape. Still the presence of menhaden (bunker) is a positive sign for the future of our fishery.

Stock assessments show that menhaden are doing fairly well. In part that is likely due to the lack of predation by bass and blues. And I have to think the legislation myself and many others worked on to push the commercial reduction fishery out of Northeast water is also a contributing factor. So damaging was this reduction fishery it was literally causing localized extinctions in our waters. One day we had menhaden, the next day they had all been netting and shipped out-of-state. Crazy shit.

As you can see in the above chart the reduction fishery has declined since its heyday. And the following charts will show the menhaden stock is healthy, although reproduction is not that great. Still I’m optimistic menhaden are rebounding in our water.