NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- The sea water surface temperature at Ponce Inlet is 75 degrees. At the beginning of the week an unusual occurrence of clear water appeared is the surf and around the pier. Anglers could see the fish like they were fish in a fish tank. The only downside was that the fish could see the anglers just as well.
There was a good visualization on the part of the fish as well as that of the anglers. The day's net result produced not one solitary fish to take home. By mid-week things were back to normal with catches of whiting as well as red and black drum being made.
The rest of the fishing report
In Mosquito and Indian River Lagoons, loads of undersized saltwater sea trout are swarming Haulover canal. Patillo creek is holding a load of black drum attacking mostly cut bait. Along the South Jetty there have been catches of nice-sized flounder including some door mats feeding on mud minnows near the inlet, Further north there have been landings of flounder, spotted sea trout, bluefish, sheepshead, and jack Crevalle.
In the Tomoka Basin and Tomoka River there were slot red drum and spotted sea trout on the oyster bars in the river and on the west shorelines for the past few days.
Offshore, there are still no bait pods so there is little to nothing to attract the predators. Out around 200 feet, the “resident dolphin” and an occasional sailfish or wahoo make for a good day.
Florida black bear draft management plan revised
The Florida black bear population has increased from as few as 300 bears in the 1970s to more than 3,000 bears today, and now the draft plan that will guide continued conservation of this species has been revised by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
The revised draft Black Bear Management Plan is available online at MyFWC.com/Bear and is ready for public input. It incorporates previous public feedback on the nearly 200-page draft plan released last November. The public is invited to comment on the revised draft plan through June 1.
About 2,500 public comments were received on the original draft plan, which establishes for the first time a statewide framework to manage Florida black bears to ensure they are never again at high risk of extinction.
Public workshops on the draft plan were held in four cities, in addition to the opportunity for people to comment online and by email or regular mail. Last February, FWC Commissioners directed staff to further refine and revise the draft plan and give careful consideration to stakeholder and public input. At their upcoming June meeting, the Commissioners are scheduled to consider approval of the revised draft plan.
Once the plan receives final approval, the black bear will no longer be on the state’s list of threatened species. The bear currently does not meet the criteria of being at high risk of extinction, based on a 2011 Biological Status Review.
In June, the Commission also will consider a new FWC rule making it unlawful to injure or kill bears, protections similar to the ones granted to bears as a threatened species. The proposed rule additionally affirms the FWC will work with landowners and regulating agencies to guide future land use to be compatible with objectives of the bear plan.
That proposed rule, as well as an FWC rule change to remove the bear from the state’s threatened species list, is currently being advertised in the Florida Administrative Weekly. Seven black bear management units would be created under the plan to involve local citizens and stakeholder groups in the management of specific bear populations and habitats.
The black bear is among 62 wildlife species that soon will join the list of Florida species, like the bald eagle, already under an FWC management plan. Florida’s new threatened species conservation model requires that management plans will be created for all species that have been state-listed and updated at specified intervals. The management plans give citizens an active role in Florida’s efforts to conserve its diverse wildlife for future generations.
Capt. Budd's PostScript
It has been written: “Someone standing behind your back while you are fishing is as bad as someone looking over your shoulder while you write a letter to your girl.”
So whether you charter, ride a head boat, run your own vessel, stay in the river, surf fish or fish from a shore or a bridge, there are fish to be caught. Fishing is not a matter of life and death, it is so much more important than that.
Tight lines, Capt. Budd