Maybe a good year?

  It seems that although I have not been able to fish much lately, it might be a good year to restock many folks' freezers.  Every day during my hikes, I wind up on the pier and, invariably, will toss the net a few times.  This is how I usually catch my bait but, more oft than not lately, it is to feed the birds.  There are a couple of night herons, egrets, gulls and pelicans that beg for handouts most every day. A toss of the net supplies the needed minnows or mullet for just such a treat.  Ms. Ez, the Bayou Dog, cannot be outdone by the birds and will eat her share as well.  

  Here lately, the Bay seems to be teeming with mullet.  While these are not large enough to eat or even use as crab bait, they are the perfect size for the birds.  Ms. Ez does draw the line on eating mullet.  She much prefers the menhaden!  The mullet, although small, have sharp fins that poke her whenever she snatches one.  The old dog has learned the difference between mullet and  menhaden and steers clear of those pointy ones!  The birds, however, are not picky.  They seem to eat anything and everything that is tossed to them.  

  The abundance of tiny mullet now means that there will be an abundance of large mullet in the near future.  Soon the Bay will be filled with boats and folks throwing nets after the "Biloxi Bacon".  Many folks do not like the strong flavor of mullet but down here, they are the staple for fish fries, the standard cookout on the Coast.  Personally, I like mullet when they are fresh.  After being in the freezer for a while, that strong taste becomes even hard for me to swallow.  I guess perhaps I am spoiled with the readily available fresh seafood.  Still, my little bird friends enjoy their fishy meals so I will continue to catch their handouts and with catches like these lately, it is easy to do.