Capt_Keith
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Joined: Apr 02, 2009
Posts: 3119
Location: Myrtle Beach SC
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 Posted: Sat Feb 20, 2010 11:32 am Post subject: Spotted Seatrout Status Update |
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Spotted Seatrout Status Update
While major trout kills have been reported in North Carolina after frigid air temperatures dropped water temperatures into and below the “danger zone,” so far there are no indications of significant trout kills along the South Carolina coast during the recent cold snap. Recreational fishermen and crabbers in the estuaries have only reported seeing a few dead trout over the last few days, but we will only gain a full picture in the week ahead when larger numbers of anglers report back and DNR is able to complete more field observations. In short, though, at this point it appears there has been some impact on fishery stocks, but so far nothing like in the winter of 2000/2001.
Mel Bell, Director of the Department of Natural Resource’s Office of Fisheries Management, says that statewide DNR has received some scattered reports of trout kills, especially north of Charleston, and reports of some lethargic red drum that could be picked up with your hand. However, DNR’s monitoring technicians out on the Ashley River today did not see significant numbers of dead fish.
John at Georgetown Landing Marina reports that few people have been out on the water but the marina hasn’t heard any reports of major kills in that area, although he cautions that dead fish would likely sink to the bottom. He also notes that in the last few days he has seen surface water temperatures as low as 39 degrees, about as cold as he can remember in the area and significantly colder than the 44.6 degree Fahrenheit mark below which prolonged exposure will cause trout mortality.
Mike Able at Haddrell’s Point in Mount Pleasant says that he has heard isolated reports of trout kills from crabbers and fishermen, but it is too early to tell how widespread the damage will be. He points out that with a cold night tonight fish are still in the danger zone, and that not a lot of people have been on the water to gather data the last few days. Once substantial numbers of fishermen are out they should be able to see even dead trout that have sunk to the bottom, instead of washing up on shore, with easy visibility 4-6 feet deep.
Mike is optimistic, though, and points out a couple of differences between the conditions which caused the 2000/2001 trout kill and the current one. Nine years ago a very rapid drop in temperatures produced the fish kill, while this year temperatures gradually fell from 53 to 51 to 49 and so on. Trout have an easier time coping with a gradual decrease in temperature. Similarly, a prolonged cold period with multiple frigid nights is worse for trout than one or two nights in the dangerous temperature zone, and with higher daytime and nighttime temperatures expected for the next few days the trout should find some temperature relief. The cold water temperature period in 2000/2001 was more extended.
Haddrell’s Point will continue to take a strong interest in monitoring the situation in part because the state could impose an emergency closure on the trout fishery if necessary to allow remaining females to spawn this spring. By next Wednesday Mike Able is confident that a full picture of the damage will have emerged.
In Beaufort Captain Tuck Scott of Bay Street Outfitters worries that higher than normal numbers of trout may have been killed over the last few days, but not directly by the cold. Out on the water in the last couple of days he has seen no signs of dead fish, but he has noticed that the dolphin which would usually be chasing redfish up onto the flats this time of year aren’t there. Instead there has been heavy dolphin activity just off the edges of the flats, and he worries that trout partially stunned by the 41-43 degree water he has been reading are easy pickings for dolphins. Usually dolphins eschew more nimble trout in favor of less agile redfish, but with trout more sensitive to drops in the temperature the redfish may now be more difficult quarry. Which is good news for the redfish!
Initial observations do not indicate that a significant number of trout have been killed during the recent cold snap, although more data still needs to be collected. Nonetheless, at least at this point it appears the impact on trout stocks will be far less than during the protracted cold spell of the winter of 2000/2001.
by Jay A'Hern
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Captain Keith
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