Jubilee or Fish Kill?

Every now and again, the Coast sees a "Fish Jubilee".  For those who do not know, a Jubilee is a mass swarming of fish and crustaceans towards the shallow water.  No one really knows why the sea life does this.  There are numerous explanation but none that seems to fully explain or predict the event.  Once word spreads that a Jubilee is occurring, thousands of locals flock to the beach to fill up buckets, sacks and baskets with fish and crabs.  A scoop net and bucket are the only tools required to obtain quite a hefty amount of seafood.  The sad part is, tons of fish become trapped and die.  Yesterday morning, the Coast awoke to such a mess.  During the night, a Jubilee occurred.  A grand thing for many folks who want a great haul of seafood but a grand mess for those that use the beach during the daylight hours.  Personally, I worry about any fish kill.  Could there be some unseen cause that made so many fish seek safer waters?  Hmmm?  Ponder, ponder.  Experts claim that a depletion of oxygen in the deeper water causes the fish to head toward the shallows.  Red Tide (Algae bloom) can cause such a depletion.  Red Tide can also cause health problems for sea life and humans alike.  I do hope this was not the case with this so-called Jubilee.  Something just tells me not all is right with the Gulf of Mexico.

I was on the pier early this morning and saw nary a dead fish in the Bay.  Perhaps none seeking clean water came this far?  I have no clue.  What I did see was a healthy looking Bay.  Menhaden were schooling in droves, mullet were running and bottlenose dolphins were playing.  All seemed well.   I counted my blessings and said a quiet prayer of thanks.  So far there were no problems this far inland.   The clean waters set the stage for one of my favorite birds.  The Black Skimmer was making good use of the schools of menhaden.  He was able to get breakfast quite easily this morning.  As I watched him, the golden sunlight played on his white feathered underside.  Such a beauty, this one!

The Gulf of Mexico has had enough problems over the past few years.  It does not need some other catastrophe bearing down on it.  Hopefully, this latest fish kill was a natural occurrence.  Hopefully, the authorities that are calling it a Jubilee are correct.  I worry far too much about my Bayou, I suppose, but it is a way of life..not only of the fish and critters but of mine as well.  Hopefully, my gut feeling is for naught.