EDGEWATER -- The sea surface temperature at Ponce Inlet is in the high 60s and low 70s. In the surf and off the piers, whiting are plentiful as are bluefish. Pompano seem to be present one day and then gone the next. A lot of the pompano were feeding on periwinkles, which are small, edible marine snails having thick, cone-shaped, whorled shells.
In Ponce Inlet, founder continue to please anglers as have snook. Remember that snook season will be closed from Dec. 15 to Jan. 31.
In Mosquito and Indian River Lagoons, redfish were being caught on Gulp artificial baits as well as live finger mullet.
In the Halifax River, there were reports of catches of spotted sea trout, redfish and snook best caught with natural baits.
In the Tomoka River and Basin, spotted sea trout, redfish, flounder and snook. Offshore winds and high seas prevented fishing on several days but when the boats could get out, there were good catches of red snapper and black sea bass. Lane snapper and triggerfish were also caught in big numbers. Those who were trolling report catching sailfish, dolphin and wahoo.
Don't release balloons into the air for the holidays or any other time
As people gather together for occasions that make the holidays bright, remember that releasing balloons may be harmful to wildlife. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission wants event and meeting organizers and other Floridians to be aware of a law prohibiting the release of more than nine lighter-than-air balloons within a 24-hour period. Instead of releasing balloons this holiday season, the FWC suggests groups use more environmentally friendly ways to celebrate events such as New Year's Eve and football bowl games.
The release into the atmosphere of large numbers of balloons inflated with lighter-than-air gases poses a danger and nuisance to the environment, particularly to wildlife and marine animals. Balloons released in Florida almost inevitably end up in the Gulf of Mexico, Atlantic Ocean or other water bodies.
Wildlife, especially sea turtles, mistake balloons for food, and strings attached to balloons can entangle birds and other animals. There are exceptions for balloons released indoors, scientific or meteorological balloons released by a government agency or under government contract, or hot air balloons recovered after launching.
December is hunting season so know the dos and don'ts
There's finally a chill and certain festiveness in the air as most of us try to take time off from work to enjoy spending quality time with family and friends and reflect on the passing year. Children will be out of school on winter break soon, and while the holiday season is upon us, so are several traditional hunting opportunities.
The second phase of waterfowl and coot season arrived statewide Dec. 10 and runs through Jan. 29. In addition to the usual hunting license and permit requirements, duck hunters also must have a Florida waterfowl permit ($5) and a federal duck stamp ($15).
The daily bag limit on ducks is six, but you need to know your ducks before you pull the trigger, because there are different daily limits for each species. For instance, within the six-bird limit there may be only one black duck, one mottled duck, one fulvous whistling-duck and one canvasback.
Only two of your six-bird limit may be pintails, redheads or scaup, and three may be wood ducks. And you may have no more than four scoters and four mallards (of which only two may be female) in your bag. All other species of ducks can be taken up to the six-bird limit, except harlequin ducks.
The daily limit on coots is 15, and there's a five-bird limit on mergansers, only two of which may be hooded. When hunting waterfowl, hunters may use only non-toxic shotgun shells. Only iron (steel), bismuth-tin and various tungsten-alloys are permissible. For something different, try woodcock hunting. Woodcock season runs Dec. 18 - Jan. 31.
Woodcocks are excellent game birds because they hold well for pointing bird dogs and provide a challenging shot when flushed. The daily bag limit is three. The third phase of mourning and white-winged dove season opens Dec. 10 and runs through Jan. 8. The daily bag limit is 15 birds.
From November on, shooting hours for all migratory birds are one-half hour before sunrise to sunset. However, you must get a no-cost migratory bird permit where you purchase your hunting license before you hunt any of these birds. The only firearm you can use to hunt migratory game birds is a shotgun, no larger than 10-gauge. Shotguns must be plugged to a three-shell capacity (magazine and chamber combined). Bows also are legal.
Retrievers and bird dogs can be useful in hunting migratory game birds. Artificial decoys and manual or mouth-operated bird calls also are legal and essential gear for duck hunters. You may hunt migratory game birds over an agricultural field if the crop was planted by regular agricultural methods.
However, don't even think about "sweetening" the field by scattering agricultural products over it - or anywhere near it - or you could wind up in serious trouble. It doesn't matter if you aren't the one who scattered the bait. If you knew or should've known that such bait was present, you're accountable under federal law.
Some other things you can't do while hunting migratory game birds include using rifles, pistols, crossbows, traps, snares, nets, sink boxes, swivel guns, punt guns, battery guns, machine guns, fish hooks, poisons, drugs, explosive substances, live decoys and recorded bird calls, sounds or electrically amplified bird-call imitations. It is also against the law to shoot from a moving automobile or boat and herd or drive birds with vehicles or vessels.
Bobcat and otter hunting season is Dec. 1 - March 1, and there's no daily bag or season limit on either species. Like foxes, bobcats may be chased year-round with dogs, but possessing firearms during the closed season, between March 2 and Nov. 30, is prohibited. On a few wildlife management areas, bobcats and otters may not be taken, so please consult the specific area brochure before you hunt.
Whether upland bird hunting with friends and family, shooting ducks on the pond with your favorite lab or taking that big cat as he slips up behind an unsuspecting fawn, December has the hunting opportunities you're looking for.
Capt. Budd's PostScript
When speaking about nature, it has been written: “all but beauty will pass – beauty will never die. No, not even when the earth and the sun have died will beauty perish. It will live on in the stars.”
So whether you charter, ride a head boat, run your own vessel, stay in the river, surf fish, or fish from shore or a bridge, there are fish to be caught. Fishing is not a matter of life or death; it is so much more important than that.
Tight lines, Capt. Budd
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