# Texas fish status



## MatthewAbbott

TX fish kills... what to do


I saw a video of a guy idling a boat across a flat in the days after the worst temps.. He was amazed at not only the dead fish but the live fish sunning themselves. %$^#&()$)! dude. Could you not just left them alone? Instead you made them expend energy and scattered them all to hell so you...




www.microskiff.com


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## MatthewAbbott

If you want to follow along. If not... the lower bays got hit pretty hard. Upper bays seemed to fair better but fish are starting to be found in West Galveston bay.


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## Surffshr

The dead ones that were on the bottom are now floating and it is pretty ugly around here. Most of the windward shorelines have a varied assortment of all species and plenty of them.


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## Smackdaddy53

It’s not good.


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## sjrobin

Fish sink when they die due to any cause of death. Usually humans never see them because they are eaten by other marine animals before they surface. During large fish kill events, the numbers overwhelm the scavengers and decomposition gases float the dead fish where current or wind stack the carcasses on shorelines. The decomposition rates vary, so one bay may show sooner than others. More accurate assessments can be made several weeks after the event. Here are a few examples from East Matagorda Wednesday. Lots of XL trout and lots of fat white and brown pelicans/gulls picking up the smaller fish as they surfaced. Anyone can view this shared album at: iCloud Photo Sharing


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## BBYC

Baffin has lots of small dead fish floating up in Callo de Grullo, but only a few over 14 inches so far. Friends went fishing last night (mostly beer drinking) and caught and released several large drum, a 47, and two 27's so at least some of the big breeders got to the channel and survived.


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## karstopo

Any bets on what TP&W will ultimately do and when? I wonder if people will quit the coastal inshore fishing scene in any significant numbers? Anything like all catch and release or a one or two trout limit would have to knock back the numbers of people on the bay, wouldn’t it? Or finally making croaker a gamefish, wouldn’t that be great! Maybe there’s a silver lining out three or four years from now. No more croaker soakers, no more idiot hordes out burning shorelines or the endless moving and cruising from one spot to the next with 5-10 minutes of fishing punctuated with anchor tossing competitions and hooting and hollering at every 14” trout that somehow miraculously comes aboard.

I’d be for catch and release for a year or two just to thin out the numbers of fishermen, even setting aside how it would help the fish. Never soaked a croaker, but I like catching them, so making them a game fish would be A okay here.

Anyway, seems like an opportunity for TP&W to get something meaningful for the future done, even at the expense of ticking off half of the fishermen out there.


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## Smackdaddy53

karstopo said:


> Any bets on what TP&W will ultimately do and when? I wonder if people will quit the coastal inshore fishing scene in any significant numbers? Anything like all catch and release or a one or two trout limit would have to knock back the numbers of people on the bay, wouldn’t it? Or finally making croaker a gamefish, wouldn’t that be great! Maybe there’s a silver lining out three or four years from now. No more croaker soakers, no more idiot hordes out burning shorelines or the endless moving and cruising from one spot to the next with 5-10 minutes of fishing punctuated with anchor tossing competitions and hooting and hollering at every 14” trout that somehow miraculously comes aboard.
> 
> I’d be for catch and release for a year or two just to thin out the numbers of fishermen, even setting aside how it would help the fish. Never soaked a croaker, but I like catching them, so making them a game fish would be A okay here.
> 
> Anyway, seems like an opportunity for TP&W to get something meaningful for the future done, even at the expense of ticking off half of the fishermen out there.


I concur


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## Permit.Me

karstopo said:


> Any bets on what TP&W will ultimately do and when? I wonder if people will quit the coastal inshore fishing scene in any significant numbers? Anything like all catch and release or a one or two trout limit would have to knock back the numbers of people on the bay, wouldn’t it? Or finally making croaker a gamefish, wouldn’t that be great! Maybe there’s a silver lining out three or four years from now. No more croaker soakers, no more idiot hordes out burning shorelines or the endless moving and cruising from one spot to the next with 5-10 minutes of fishing punctuated with anchor tossing competitions and hooting and hollering at every 14” trout that somehow miraculously comes aboard.
> 
> I’d be for catch and release for a year or two just to thin out the numbers of fishermen, even setting aside how it would help the fish. Never soaked a croaker, but I like catching them, so making them a game fish would be A okay here.
> 
> Anyway, seems like an opportunity for TP&W to get something meaningful for the future done, even at the expense of ticking off half of the fishermen out there.


Certainly seems reasonable!


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## MatthewAbbott

I just hope it doesn’t push a lot of the guys from down south up here.


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## Permit.Me

MatthewAbbott said:


> I just hope it doesn’t push a lot of the guys from down south up here.


It may move a few guide operations over to Louisiana!


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## omegadef

Permit.Me said:


> It may move a few guide operations over to Louisiana!


No thanks. They should pick up bass fishing.


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## Smackdaddy53

MatthewAbbott said:


> I just hope it doesn’t push a lot of the guys from down south up here.


I’m not coming up there so count me out!


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## Smackdaddy53

omegadef said:


> No thanks. They should pick up bass fishing.


We like to catch big trout anyway, y’all ate all of yours! Haha


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## omegadef

Smackdaddy53 said:


> We like to catch big trout anyway, y’all ate all of yours! Haha











Release Over 20″


Release Over 20 is a conservation organization to influence anglers to Influence Anglers to Follow Personal Catch and Creel Limits More Restrictive than the Law Allows, by using Rewards, Posi…




eyestrikefishing.com


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## Smackdaddy53

omegadef said:


> Release Over 20″
> 
> 
> Release Over 20 is a conservation organization to influence anglers to Influence Anglers to Follow Personal Catch and Creel Limits More Restrictive than the Law Allows, by using Rewards, Posi…
> 
> 
> 
> 
> eyestrikefishing.com


We need to keep pushing, this will eventually rub off on others.


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## RJTaylor

MatthewAbbott said:


> I just hope it doesn’t push a lot of the guys from down south up here.


Come on, man! Everybody needs to share, and I really need a break from the CC "go fast" guys.


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## MatthewAbbott

RJTaylor said:


> Come on, man! Everybody needs to share, and I really need a break from the CC "go fast" guys.


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## RJTaylor




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## RJTaylor

Baffin


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## MatthewAbbott

I feel bad for you boys down south.


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## karstopo

Saw report a day or two ago from an upper coast location and plenty of keeper sized trout came aboard. Report said it was like before the freeze.


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## Smackdaddy53

karstopo said:


> Saw report a day or two ago from an upper coast location and plenty of keeper sized trout came aboard. Report said it was like before the freeze.


What does that mean?


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## Permit.Me

RJTaylor said:


> View attachment 168954
> View attachment 168955
> View attachment 168956


Wow! That first photo is pretty disturbing! Looks like it may be a long haul before a rebound?










/


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## Outdoorsie Jen

I was out last Wednesday and over the weekend - black drum and reds were in the flats but were pretty lethargic. Looked for trout, they were on the typical dropoff like usual. Saw hardheads, puffers, tons of mullet, blackdrum, reds, and trout dead along the shoreline. I think the biggest fish hit were the mullet.


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## omegadef

Outdoorsie Jen said:


> I was out last Wednesday and over the weekend - black drum and reds were in the flats but were pretty lethargic. Looked for trout, they were on the typical dropoff like usual. Saw hardheads, puffers, tons of mullet, blackdrum, reds, and trout dead along the shoreline. I think the biggest fish hit were the mullet.


Mullet kill off will slow redfish size growth, but I'd imagine the numbers will be ok. They eat almost anything. 
I bet the crabs are happy.


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## Permit.Me

Permit.Me said:


> I watched a really good video (I think that it was here) on the early observations of the results of the freeze in Texas. Does anyone have any new updates? It seemed like some areas were devastated while areas that had some deeper channels faired a bit better.


I just watched a very interesting interview on YouTube, Capt. Caleb TV with special guest, Retired Marine Biologist, Dr. David McKee. I think that it's 30 minutes of must see if you're curious or concerned about the affects of the recent Texas freeze.


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## skinnydip

Catch and release on my boat this year for myself and my customers. Most responsible guides doing the same. of course i usually encourage that anyway. Fingers crossed we come back faster than the bad ones in the past. Keep 00 is the mantra for awhile!


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## Permit.Me

skinnydip said:


> Catch and release on my boat this year for myself and my customers. Most responsible guides doing the same. of course i usually encourage that anyway. Fingers crossed we come back faster than the bad ones in the past. Keep 00 is the mantra for awhile!


That's a great first step! Let's hope that more guides/fishermen follow your lead!


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## Smackdaddy53

Sadly, a few of these guides that were just talking about catch and release to let the fish recover are already back to boxing 5 person limits plus the guide limit and posting reports on social media. It’s to the point that public shaming should be imposed. How can people be so blatantly ignorant and selfish? Pretty easy these days.


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## Permit.Me

Smackdaddy53 said:


> Sadly, a few of these guides that were just talking about catch and release to let the fish recover are already back to boxing 5 person limits plus the guide limit and posting reports on social media. It’s to the point that public shaming should be imposed. How can people be so blatantly ignorant and selfish? Pretty easy these days.


Pretty sad and shortsighted!


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