Capt. Reports Banner Year on Scallops in Homosassa

Capt. Mark of A Actrion Filled Adventure reported that it has been a banner year for scalloping on the Homosassa River.

“We’ve been getting our limits while we’re out there,” he said.

An abundance of scallops is a prime indicator of good water quality, something that should be beneficial for fishing in the river.

Scallop season this year was extended to Sept. 25. There is a daily limit of two gallons of whole bay scallops in the shell or one pint of bay scallop meat per person.

Also, no more than 10 gallons of whole bay scallops in the shell or one-half gallon of bay scallop meat may be possessed onboard any time. Scallopers are allowed to harvest bay scallops by hand or with a landing or dip net. Finally, bay scallops may not be harvested for commercial purposes.Unless exempt, standard Florida saltwater fishing licenses are required.

But be careful. Capt. Mark said boaters seem to be in “NASCAR” mode and the channels are full of rocks, so boaters need to watch out for channels markers to ensure hey do not drift outside the channel and risk running aground or flipping their boat.

Capt. Mark said the water temperature in upper Tampa Bay this week hit 91 degrees, and there is a large orange-algae bloom on the surface, something Capt. Mark said is common when water temperatures are exceedingly hot. He added that fishing around this bloom has been decent for trout.

Finally, Capt. Mark said the artificial reef in front of the Gandy Bridge has been holding trout and mangrove snapper, and the hundreds of artificial reefs in Tampa Bay are good bets at holding some keeper snapper.