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Abundant Scallops Set For Harvest

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By FRANK SARGEANT The Tampa Tribune

The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 2, 2008

Things look promising this summer for those who love the taste of bay scallops. The season opened Tuesday, and the annual scallop survey conducted by the Florida Wildlife Research Institute in St. Petersburg showed numbers at least doubling in some areas since last year. And even locations where scallops have been absent for decades are showing good populations, according to FWRI biologist Steve Geiger.

Researchers map out 20 stations in each of the survey locations, and divers then canvass 600-square-meter areas around each of those stations. Geiger said the year-to-year variation in count at these locations provides an index of scallop abundance.

"The best spot this year looks like Steinhatchee, where the count went from around 37 last year to almost 140 this year," Geiger said. "Homosassa will also be good; it went from 48 in 2007 to 86.2 this year."

He said the waters of the Panhandle, on the other hand, appear to be down somewhat, at least in early year samples, dropping from 41 last year to 11.3 this year.

Perhaps the biggest surprise came in areas that are closed to scalloping. Poor water quality all but wiped out scallops in Tampa Bay in the 1950s, and more recently in Anclote Sound. But both those areas are now showing excellent populations in some areas.

"At Fort DeSoto, we averaged 200 scallops in the survey areas, and there were zero in those areas 20 years ago," Geiger said.

At Anclote, the story is equally good. In the late 80s, the scallops were very scarce, but divers counted an average of 174 last year and 178 this year at the stations.

The comeback is mostly due to improved water quality in Tampa Bay, where sewage outfalls were cleaned up starting in the early 1980s. Another factor is likely the restocking efforts by the FWRI, which has put out thousands of the little shellfish in likely habitat over the past decade.

No harvest of scallops is permitted south of the Pasco/Hernando line, but if numbers remain high in the restocked areas, it's not impossible that a limited season might be opened to reintroduce more Bay area families to the sport.

Scalloping is a great sport for kids. It takes place in water 3 to 8 feet deep, mostly over turtle grass bottom. The divers snorkel along at the surface, then dive down to grab the slow-swimming shellfish.

"Keepers" are typically about 2 inches across the shell, and the limit is two gallons whole, per person per day, or 10 gallons per boat.

The edible portion of a scallop is only the white muscle that activates the swimming shell; unlike oysters, scallops are not eaten whole. Thus, it takes quite a few of them to make a meal, but the diving is fun.

Cleaning can be a challenge. Most people use a spoon or a butter knife to pry open the shell and then cut away the edible meat.

The flavor of fresh scallops is well worth the effort. They're best lightly sauteed, then served with melted butter and a squeeze of fresh lemon or lime juice.

Finding the scallops out of the popular ports at Steinhatchee and Homosassa is mostly a matter of looking for the fleet. You'll see dozens of boats where the scallops are concentrated. Otherwise, motor along slowly and watch the grassy bottom for the white or tan shells either on the grass or slightly above it. Scallops are the only shellfish that can swim.

Scalloping is a relatively safe sport, but one danger is getting too far from the boat and not being able to swim back against the current. One way to avoid the issue is to keep a driver in the boat and allow it to drift along with the divers, rather than anchoring it in one spot. This way, tired divers can easily get back into the boat, or can drop off their catch and return to diving.

Sharks are occasionally seen while snorkeling the deeper flats. There has never been an incident reported with scallop divers, but particularly when bull sharks are seen it's best to get out of the water and go to another area.

Scalloping requires a saltwater fishing license if done from a boat, and by anyone who would need a license to harvest finfish. The season ends Sept. 10.

ETC.: I'll join captain Mel Berman of WFLA, 970 AM, tonight at 7 for a fishing clinic at Toyota of Tampa Bay, 1101 E. Fletcher Ave., Tampa. Guests get free snacks and door prizes; (866) 438-8696. ... The Tampa Audubon Society meets July 12 at Lettuce Lake Park in Tampa. It is open to the public; new members are welcome. The club also hosts a nature photography clinic on the third Saturday of each month; (813) 286-7773.

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