NANFA-- collecting Boca Chica Key,Florida
Noturus2_at_aol.com
Thu, 15 Mar 2001 14:19:15 EST
Today was a perfect day in the Keys, 85 deg, light wind and hot. I drove 8
miles up the Keys to Boca Chica beach behind the Naval Air Station. (Rego,
you know the place). The water was churned up from the wind so it wasn't
clear but the wind had blown in tons of sargassumweed. So I put on my aqua
shoes and grabbed my dipnet and waded in it was warm 76 deg.
At first there wasn't much life in the weed just shrimp and sargassum
crabs, and a few sargassum nudibranchs. Every piece of plastic and floating
bits of wood were covered with goose barnacles. Then I saw a large man of war
floating on the surface under it were 5 man of war fish (Nomeus gronovii)
they live among the stinging tentacles. Beautiful silver and blue. Moving
further out into deeper water I started to sample the sargassum. Basically
lifting my dipnet under a floating clump and shaking it out over the net.
There were sargassumfish (Histrio histrio), one Southern Hake, juvenile
sergeant majors, filefish, a baby dolphin (fish not mammal),
sargassum pipefish, juv tripletails and one rough triggerfish.
A pretty good day despite getting my neck sunburned.
Andy Borgia
Key West,Florida
PS- would like to hear about more marine collecting. Marine fish are native
too!
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