Capt. Lee Noga
Change of natures seasons closes 1 door and opens many others to keep us engaged and entertained. There are rumbles folks are still shrimping Oak Hill and Brevard. These rumors are facts. Oak Hill is still producing small shrimp with mixed sizes in the area. Tampa is on the radar and they are into the crickets. Best place to shrimp in Tampa is at Fort DeSoto (3500 Pinellas Bayway S., St. Petersburg, FL 33715 ), you don’t need a boat. There remains “hit and miss” pockets of action in N. Brevard. Great news is S. Brevard has risen from the ashes. They have had a miserable last few years but this year we are in what may become epic. There is no complaints of S. Brevard sewage odors which dominated the forums earlier in the year. Hot areas right now are the Melbourne bridges coupled with a cast net is producing nice buckets. Shrimp Trapping is on fire at the SR 192, a Brevard spot known for trapping.
Asian tiger shrimp are still being caught inshore and near shore. They were released into the water from North Carolina in 1985 after a lab accident. They have been mating with our local species as well as eating a lot of our food resources sustaining our current shrimpery. Scalloping season is now open for the popular areas such as Crystal River, Keaton and Steinhatchee (located in panhandle West Coast, Florida). There is nothing more joyous than chasing these little sea biscuits with snorkel and mask. Crystal River is about a 2 hour drive from Central Florida, and Steinhatchee is about 4 hour commute.
Is this the month that the white summer shrimp that run during the day time populate S. Volusia/S. Daytona area this month. The last few years have been below standards. In 2017 we had an anomaly where a bio mass of jumbo whites ran from Oct 2016 – May 2017 during winter season pushed into our area by Hurricane. There was no summer season in 2017. This year we had more normal winter shrimping pattern, few white shrimp, NO Asians caught. To be honest, the last 5 years killed the commercial fishing industry who depend on the white shrimp run over the summer. After 2 hurricanes in 2 years, I am optimistic the needle will swing towards the rehabilitation of the summer season. If they do not appear this month, monitor Jacksonville N.E. Reports. It is very common for Central Florida to tow the 2 hours to N.E. Region who had a very healthy summer shrimping season. Intel changes daily, for up to the minute intel and reports visit us on Facebook at Florida Shrimping Academy – Tips & Tricks.
Capt. Lee Noga
Academy of shrimping
www.leenoga.com