While we are very concerned about the possibility of our trout being devestated by predators during the recent extended cold weather, our redfish numbers seem to be as high as ever.

In Beaufort Captain Tuck Scott of Bay Street Outfitters worries that higher than normal numbers of trout may have been killed over the last few days, but not directly by the cold. Out on the water in the last couple of days he has seen no signs of dead fish, but he has noticed that the dolphin which would usually be chasing redfish up onto the flats this time of year aren’t there. Instead there has been heavy dolphin activity just off the edges of the flats, and he worries that trout partially stunned by the 41-43 degree water he has been reading are easy pickings for dolphins. Usually dolphins eschew more nimble trout in favor of less agile redfish, but with trout more sensitive to drops in the temperature the redfish may now be more difficult quarry. Which is good news for the redfish!