Dead Tarpon in the Suwannee

Following reports of at least 40 tarpon floating dead in the home canals near the mouth of the Suwannee River, a result of the past week of frigid weather, I launched the boat there yesterday and had a look. These canals are like a maze, unless you own a home there and learn the place. Anyway, I cruised a dozen canals in the afternoon, looking for tarpon.

I talked to several home-owners who had seen none, while one guy suggested there were three “just around the corner.” Eventually I found one 20-pound tarpon, that had been dead for several days. Took a few pictures, and then after lifting him half out of the water for a moment, he abruptly sank! This would suggest there are at least other tarpon on the bottom, that haven’t bloated up yet as the weather warms. Other possibilities: I didn’t find the right canal(s) where most of the tarpon had perished, they had sunk back down, or someone, perhaps a biologist, had collected the floaters for samples.

The only other dead fish in the canals were mullet, and not many of them. I suspect many were harvested by home-owners: One local told me he’d dipped out all the mullet he needed, several days ago when many of these fish were swimming feebly on the surface. His neighbor kept 40, as well. I spotted perhaps 10 still in this condition, and dipped out six for myself, which we fried last night. Rolled in cornmeal, they were better than seatrout. Mullet from the spring-fed Suwannee River are almost certainly the best-tasting of any lisa (Spanish name for mullet) found anywhere in the world).

While snook and other gamefish are generally protected when stunned during serious cold weather, especially when out of season, it’s certainly legal to harvest mullet and tilapia, and lots of it. It’s best to take them when still alive of course, for health reasons. Since tilapia die in such cold weather, one local man picked up several dozen that weighed 88 pounds total, keeping them for his freezer.

As for tarpon, it would appear there was no major kill here. Most of them migrate south for the winter. Others stick close to coastal springs and power plants. I did see them rolling, and ghosting by in the green gloom, while scuba diving yesterday at Crystal River. But that’s another story, to be posted here tomorrow. They certainly looked happier than those found in the Suwannee…