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Fins to Feather

by Scarlet Colley - August - 2003

Many a fisherman spends time out on the Laguna Madre bay fishing away. Fishing the bottom may bring up some interesting creatures. Not always welcome on the end of a hook are several creatures that call the bay their home. Stingrays are common bottom feeders that help to keep the waters of the bay clean and livable. They are scavengers that need protection from their predators for they are mighty tasty to eat. They have therefore evolved a whip tail that sports a serrated, boney like sword that with its pointed tip will impale the unsuspecting marauder. The stingray is actually quite a pleasant and harmless sort unless provoked, stepped on or swinging from the end of a hook. The Butterfly ray is harmless having no barb at all.

Then there is the Hardhead. This sea catfish scavenger will bite anything and are scooped up by the hundreds in the winter by wintering double-crested cormorants. They have a mean spear like dorsal fin and great care must be taken when releasing this meany. He is never the less an important scavenger, keeping the bottom clean of rotting debris. The male carries fertile eggs in his mouth till they hatch. There is also evidence that these fish have sonar capability and therefore do so well in the murky bay. When left to die on the jetties or the beach they can pose a real threat to foot traffic. Their dorsal fin can actually puncture a tire much less a shoe.

Another fish that lurks just below to snap up a nice fat shrimp on a hook is the Toad fish. This guy rather resembles Oscar the grouch from Sesame Street. He is a real loafer and has a mean temperament and a nasty bite though his blunt teeth rarely break the skin. Another unwanted shrimp thief is the Black Edged Moray Eel (ocellated) and the Shrimp Eel. These not only tangle up the line with all their wiggling about but make it difficult to release them as well. The shrimp eel is fairly harmless while the black edged can saw right thru skin into the meat of an innocent hand that is trying to get the poor eel of his hook. Nice thank you there. The list goes on with Ribbon fish, Robin fish, puffer fish, and many more. The stories that the bay fishing party boat guides can tell are interesting and often humorus. One of the oddest catch of one of the local boat captains was a fireworm. This worm can sting like fire if handled. Another funny catch was a grapefruit can with an octopus inside and a boot with a toadfish inside.

So now while fishing one has learned so much about the bottom feeders of the bay while trying to hook a keeper. The keepers are the fish bound for the palate. Whiting, Sand Trout, Flounder, Snapper, Drum, Croaker, Sheepshead and others are among these prized fish. Off to the table these are bound while the rest return to the sea to do their jobs. Fishing is relaxing, a wonderful way to spend the day and absorb the nature that abounds us. There are many guides that can be purchased on the fishes of the gulf of Mexico and marine life of the Laguna Madre. Also the many birds flying around can be learned about from a simple bird book guide.

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