Friends of Padre Beach Report 9/10/2016

Via Captain Billy Sandifer

Absolutely no sign whatsoever of any red tide encountered on the entire beach to the Port Mansfield jetties. Never saw a single dead fish. No aerosol effects encountered. Driving was 2 wheel drive the entire length of the beach. There are few shells or other items for beachcombers. Much fewer people than one would expect on a beautiful Saturday. Surf was flat and extremely clear the entire length. There are lots of birds but not in the numbers yet that will be present later in the month. The migration is really just kicking off. Overall fishing was apparently rather slow with small skipjacks and small whiting being the majority of catches. There were small shoals of Dusky Anchovies with skipjacks working them encountered now and then offshore but the most activity was apparently from Bob Hall Pier to the 10 mile marker on PINS where large shoals of Dusky Anchovies were at the water’s edge with some skipjacks working them. Apparently there were a few scattered redfish and Atlantic Bluefish caught on the North end of PINS. Few finger mullet were observed and they were North of the 20 mile marker. Bird species observed included 2 Yellow-crowned Night-Herons, 15 Cattle Egrets, 76 Red Knots, 1 White-tailed Hawk, 4 Caracara, 1 Western Sandpiper, Wilson’s, Piping and Snowy Plover, 3 Ring-billed gulls, 2 Herring Gulls, 600+ Brown Pelicans, 2 Black Skimmers, 1 Turkey Vulture, 40+ Long-billed Curlew, 1 Marbled Godwit, 30,000 Black Terns (very few adult males), plenty of laughing Gulls, Ruddy Turnstones, Sanderlings. Caspian, Royal, Sandwich, Foresters, Common, and least Terns were in moderate numbers. Now if we can just continue to dodge the bullet on red tide as these first Northers come through our great fall fishing will kick in.
Be Careful, Be Courteous, Be Kind. Your Brother in the sand.

Billy