11 replies to this topic

[mattknepley]

Got to spend a couple days with my family down on Hilton Head Island. A brackish (closer to salt than fresh, by a long shot)branch of Fish Haul Creek forms a muck bottomed "lagoon" behind Mom and Dad's condo on Dillon Road. The water was absolutely brown, but the gators smaller than I remembered, so I took Ol' Reliable down to the shore and gave it a few swipes.

I was very happy and excited to find Sheepshead Minnows (Cyprinodon variegatus), several Inland Silversides (Menidia beryllina), dozens of Sailfin Mollies, and even a few Gambusia. But the real prize was several smallish Fat Sleepers (Dormitator maculatus)! No, none of these are necessarily out of the ordinary, but they were new for me. And to get them all with just a few swipes of the Perfect Dipnet, standing in the same spot, was just heavenly! The only tricky id on the bunch were the Inland Silversides, but they were definitely silversides of some sort, and I believe the only silverside with a swim bladder to extend significantly past the front of the anal fin is beryllina.

Pictures for proof, no artistic quality claimed whatsoever...

Inland Silverside. This picture shows the swim bladder best. I have others (almost as good as this one) that show the nearly unmistakable silverside body shape much better.



Fat Sleepers! I was really taken with these bad boys and girls. So would love to have the resources for a big ol' tank for one.





Sheepsheads, and Sailfins, and yes the water really was that brown this time! (Usually dark, but not like this!)







Mitchellville "primitive" Beach turned up two new lifers for me, too. Tons of Striped Killifish (Fundulus majalis), including some really nice, big sized mamas my daughter Kerry dipnetted. The coolest find, maybe of the whole trip, was a small (~ 3/4 inch) Blackcheek Tonguefish (Symphurus plagiusa). I sooo wish I had pictures for proof, because I worked hard on that last id and am pretty darn certain of it. Alas, no photo evidence. But after working through every page and description of flatfish in Kells and Carpenter's "A Field Guide to Coastal Fishes from Maine to Texas" and working over the internet, I'm sure of it. I'll borrow one of Mr. Tessler's gallery photos to illustrate. http://gallery.nanfa...ageViewsIndex=1It was very small, but it was identical to this fish.

Fwiw, if you need/want a good east coast coastal guide, I'd recommend Kells and Carpenter's book...

[Kanus]

Really cool stuff! It's been quite a while since I've gotten to play in some salt and you're definitely making me miss it!

[Isaac Szabo]

Those are some cool fish Matt. Fat sleeper is a species that I haven't seen yet but would really like to.

[Josh Blaylock]

Very cool Matt.  I'm heading to Fort Walton FL later this year.  I can't decide to take collecting gear or not.  You're leaning towards taking it.

[fritz]

Take it you fool! Lots of interesting critters to see - none of which you will know

[Josh Blaylock]

Take it you fool! Lots of interesting critters to see - none of which you will know

 

Space is the issue.  2 kids, 2 adults going from KY to FL.  Room for nets and buckets is hard to come by.

[Matt DeLaVega]

We just bought a yakima roof rack for our naked roof vehicle. No screws. No penetrating the roof. Was about 300 bucks. Our vehicle was one of the more expensive ones to outfit, as only Yakima made one. Many vehicles can use cheaper name brands.

[Kanus]

Josh, at least one of your kids should be young enough to fit in a bucket, right? You've got plenty of space, you just have to use it wisely.

[keepnatives]

Nets don't take up any space.  Get some breather bags and ship your fish home before you head back.

[mattknepley]

Take it! Take it! Take it!

[Matt DeLaVega]

"Uh Misty, rest area coming up, Pull the boy out of the bucket, feed him and change the diaper. Don't forget to turn the aerator back on, I'm gonna go get a Pepsi."

 

The way there should be no problem, the way back may be a different story. Pretty sure your son can't use a snorkel yet, so he won't go well in the buckets or coolers. Going to have to follow the advice of Mike and mail fish home if you want to keep some, or just be happy net and release or snorkeling.

[gzeiger]

Any day you catch a sleeper is a great day.