Tarpon tales from Tampa Bay
Algae bloom & glowing water impede summer bridge action
By David A. BrownEditor's note: David A. Brown has a B.A. in journalism from the University of South Florida and you can see his work in Florida Sportsman, FLWOutdoors.com, Cabela's Outfitter Journal, TIDE, In-Fisherman, Louisiana Sportsman, The St. Petersburg Times and Saltwater Angler. He also ghost-wrote and published "Fish Smart — Catch More!" for Tampa's cable TV host Capt. Bill Miller (www.billmiller.com) and a couple more publishing projects will be docking soon. He operates a professional writing/marketing agency, Tight Line Communications.
Summer is the season of silver on Florida's Gulf Coast, and much of the mining occurs after dark at bridges from Tampa Bay to Charlotte Harbor. This year, however, anglers in Upper Tampa Bay are hoping that their season won't be a bust.
Typically, July through early-October sees predictable migrations of tarpon well into the bay's upper reaches, which splits into Old Tampa Bay to the west of Tampa's Interbay Peninsula and Hillsborough Bay to the east.
In these waters, the after-hours action around all the major bridges spanning the bay can be strong to stellar. Unfortunately, the algae bloom that commonly appears each summer has been in rare form this year and its putrid presence has really stymied silver king fishing.
Not to be confused with red tide, which blooms offshore and drifts into coastal shallows and kills fish by attacking their central nervous system, the bay algae — Pyrodinium bahamense — is likely triggered when nutrients from sewerage discharges and fertilizer runoff enter warm summer waters.
The algae bloom lowers the water's dissolved oxygen content and thereby drives fragile baitfish out of the area. Tarpon make a good living on the threadfin herring (aka greenbacks) and scaled sardines (whitebait) that normally gather around bridges in voluminous schools, but when the food departs, predators follow.
Capt. Bill Miller and his son Capt. Billy Miller have made Tampa Bay tarpon fishing a family event for over a decade. They typically keep their customized 22-foot Aquasport towerboat at Tampa Harbor Yacht Club just south of the Gandy Bridge.
With the algae bloom raging since June, the Millers have been keeping their boat in Maximo Marina at the bay's south end, where they can take advantage of the fish massing in cleaner water.
Capt. Jim Lemke, one of the area's premier tarpon guides and a real nighttime pro, said that recent weeks have seen some improvement in upper bay water conditions, but the scene is one of frustrating inconsistency. Daily breezes and summer storms have been pushing the algae around and offering occasional brief shots at bridge tarpon.
"It's a lot better now, but there's still a ton of brown water," Lemke said. "There's a lot more fish showing up lately, but it's nothing like it usually is this time of year. That's why the tarpon fishing in the south end of the bay is on fire.
"The fish are just coming and going and fishing has been hit or miss. One day, most of the algae will be on the west side of the bay and the next day it will be mostly on the east side. It's hard to get dialed in on the fish."
Lemke said he's hopeful that the transition from summer to fall will bring just enough temperature declination to kill the algae, while leaving bay waters warm enough to keep the tarpon around for a little late season fun.
"The algae will only get flushed out when the weather starts to cool down as the fall cold fronts start," he said. "It will get flushed out on the strong (new and full) moon tides."
Complicating the algae scourge is the annual light show caused by bioluminescence. (See "Light It Up.")
Top tactics
When conditions are right in Tampa Bay, or southward into Sarasota Bay and Charlotte Harbor, the night tarpon game is all about tides and shadow lines. Tarpon utilize the bridge pilings as current breaks where they ambush baitfish and crustaceans drifting past on the tides.
Bridge lights create a border of visibility that serves as a pseudo-structure. Tarpon will cruise these shadow lines in search of baitfish that gather along the edges.
Casting jigs, artificial shrimp or crabs, suspending plugs and mullet imitators like the DOA Baitbuster will tempt fish in the shadow lines. For live baiting, anglers anchor upcurrent and drift greenbacks, whitebaits or pinfish past the bridge pilings.
Because specific "lanes" (the spaces between pilings) can be key, and because tarpon tend to run wherever they want to run, anglers attach buoys to their anchor lines for quick detachments. When a hooked fish steps on the gas and starts weaving in and out of the bridge structure, you just unfasten the anchor rope, toss the whole deal overboard and go fight your fish. Once you're done, idle back to your buoy and reattach the anchor line to maintain you position.
Unless you're a shark, tarpon are considered inedible. Therefore, anglers pursue these fish for their brutal battles and aerial acrobatics. Tarpon will fight to exhaustion, so make sure your fish survives to fight again by spending a few minutes reviving before releasing.
Firmly grip the fish's stout, toothless lower jaw and support the fish's midsection with your other hand as you idle forward to wash oxygenated water over the fish's gills. A revived tarpon won't stick around to chat, so expect a parting splash.
Keeping tabs on tarpon
Ever wish you could be a marine biologist? Well, that requires some serious schooling, but thanks to a cutting-edge research program, anyone who catches a tarpon can participate in species research. Check out "Tarpon Scrub Down" to learn more.
