First off, I’m sorry for being absent for so long. Between the poor inshore fishing here in my area and the summer heat, this old man has been hiding in the A/C…
I’m here today to say; I see massive improvements in the seagrass beds, both north and south of Fort Pierce!
Since moving here four plus years ago, we’ve witnessed several minor growing spurts of Manatee grass all over this area. To be sure, the grass was trying to grow, but it grew sparsely and usually disappeared soon after getting a toe hold.
While fishing north of town with long-time clients over Father’s Day, we were astonished to see large grass matts floating over some of my favorite spots. Once the sun rose high enough to see bottom it was obvious why the grass matts were present. The bottom was covered in thick carpets of mature Manatee grass!
More recently, Ric and I went well south of town and covered several favorite shorelines along the east side of the river. Even though the bite was slow (full moon effect) we were happy to see so much healthy, mature grass in the one foot to three foot water depth range. There were also clumps of grass out deeper.
More importantly, the new grass beds were teaming with life. Baitfish were abundant, especially pilchards, thread fins and others of their ilk. I saw a few pinfish too, in small numbers. Unfortunately, mullet were nearly absent. This might be because of the cold water issues Fort Pierce has been experiencing over the past two months or so.
Ric and I threw Tsunami top-water plugs at first light and Ric scored his first ever fish on a top-water lure. He took to “walking the dog” like a duck to water! We also managed several critters on ZMan Diezel Minnowz. All in all, a fair bite for a “full moon” morning.
In a nut shell, I have hope for continued improvement for the Indian River Lagoon. I think if the ecosystem can hold on to this new spurt of grass growth through the summer we may see an even greater improvement next year!
Until Next Time!
Capt. Mark Wright
