Sorry for the delay in the reports recently… There is a lot going on here on the west coast.\u00a0 3 mile reef has been very active as of late. some of you may have heard, we had a pod of 10 whale sharks cruising 3 mile reef in the past couple of weeks, 3 of them had\u00a0radio tags on them, also visiting 3 mile reef in the past week; dolphin fish to 15 lbs, Blackfin Tuna, a 42″ sailfish was caught last week by a local angler, and large schools of Kingfish.\u00a0 Additionally, I have spoken with Mote marine about the oil spill and what they are seeing as a result:\u00a0 “There are more large concentrations of large sharks closer to the beaches than we have seen in more than 10 years.”\u00a0 They are not attributing this to the oil spill, but also cannot rule it out.\u00a0 There species of fish that are normally seen far off our coast becoming more frequent near the beaches now than there has been in decades.\u00a0 No one\u00a0can say for\u00a0sure\u00a0if it is because of the oil, or just a normal pattern in the migration.\u00a0 We are also getting reports from local charters that some of their catches have “tar Balls” inside them when\u00a0they get back to the marinas.\u00a0 FWC has been patrolling the marinas and confiscating the affected catch for study and disposal.\u00a0 Back here on the beaches, the\u00a0Mackerel bite continues to be hot, Mangrove Snapper are on the piers, and bridges, Bonita, Kings and ladyfish are just yards off the beaches too.\u00a0 Grouper are being caught on the Skyway, most are short but there are keepers mixed in as well.\u00a0 The oil is still reportedly 80 to 100 miles off of the Central West Coast, I will keep monitoring this situation and stay in touch with the local guides for more information.<\/p>\n
Thank You,<\/p>\n
Wayne<\/p>\n