The tuna grounds off Southern California (really, off Northern Mexico’s Pacific Coast) are known for holding some of the largest yellowfin tuna in the world, as angler Mike Livingston found out recently while fishing aboard the longrange boat Vagabond. His 405.2-pounder could be a new IGFA record for this ocean roaming species.

Angler Mike Livingston with his potential world record yellowfin tuna, scaling at 405.2 pounds.

From latimes.com:

Our friends at the International Game Fish Association have released the newest list of approved world records. visit their website and check them out.

Got this from the Florida Keys Tourism folks. Still not sure how to take it, but retired Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen is saying that the oil that spewed from the Deepwater Horizon rig disaster poses a low, low threat to the Florida Keys.
Maybe we can keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best? Check out the video here, and read the Florida Keys press release.

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I find it particularly interesting that Admiral Allen cites TS Bonnie as a cause for the optimism. Although I’ve been upset by the devastation caused by this disaster along the Gulf Coast, the folks in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama have long reaped the profits of offshore oil exploration while the folks in Florida (despite our state legislature’s best efforts as of late) have shunned it for years.

Oil Response Chief: Risk Now ‘Very, Very Low’ for Oil to Travel to Florida Keys Via Loop Current; Risk ‘Will Go to Zero Once Well is Killed’

The head of the U.S. Government’s response effort to mitigate the Transocean/BP oil spill said that with the oil leak capped there is now little chance of oil remnants reaching the Florida Keys and the South Florida mainland.

And when the well is permanently sealed there will no longer be any danger of oil impacts to the region, said retired U.S. Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen during a news briefing in New Orleans Thursday.

Allen responded to South Florida “Sun Sentinel” reporter David Fleshler’s questions regarding future threats to the Keys and South Florida:

“Once the well is killed we will have secured the source of oil in relation to the (Transocean/BP) Macando well,” Allen said. “For the past several months there has been an eddy (Eddy Franklin) that has broken off from the Loop Current between the wellhead and where the current comes north and turns towards the Straits of Florida.

“So (that) eddy has created a hydraulic barrier between the wellhead and the Loop Current, and the chances that oil will become entrained in the Loop Current are very, very low and will go to zero as we continue to control the leakage at the well with the cap and ultimately kill it,” he said.

Allen said that even with all the oil that gushed between April 20 and July 15, he does not expect significant oil remnants to reach the Keys or South Florida.

“The recent storm, tropical depression Bonnie, drove most of the oil to the northwest,” he said. “This is all moving in the opposite direction where oil would need to be to enter the Loop Current.”

Been a way for a little while, and want to do a little catching up. First, they’ve finally been able to cap the DeepWater Horizon Well in the Northern Gulf of Mexico (more on that in a seperate post). Second, we’ve had one of the busiest mini-season’s ever for Florida crawfish (lobster) that I can remember here in the Florida Keys (more on that in a seperate post as well.) Am hoping to get a little more regular with posts here as we enter into the summer doldroms here in the Lower Florida Keys. So, stay tuned and see what we can come up with!

Here is Mitch Roffer’s latest report on the loop current and how it is influencing the spread of oil from the Deepwater Horizon’s ecodisaster.
Currently, the current is undergoing some significant changes that are helping keep oil from spreading to the Florida Keys and Key West, as well as Cuba and the Bahamas. But as Roffer mentions, there is a lot more to go on this unparralleld ecological tragedy.
Here us quicktime footage showing the developing trends of the Loop Current over the last several days.

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And here is an illustration of where the oil has been observed going to. It has yet to be determined what the makeup of the water column is in the grey shaded areas.

Oil progress from the Deepwater Horizon oil disaster as of 5/22/10.

For daily updates, visit me here or check out Mitch’s site.

According to Mitch Roffer’s latest analysis of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill — courtesy of Roff’s Ocean Reports — our Florida Keys’ reef system may be getting a little bit of a break as the Loop Current is undergoing some changes that could stall — at least temporarily — the arrival of oil from the event on the world’s third longest barrier reef.

May 20 graphic showing the formation of an eddy (upper right) and tendrils of oil in the Loop Current.

We’re still not out of the woods yet, and a friend sent me a brief prepared by the Key West Chamber of Commerce detailing the effects of the oil spill on the fishing charter business. I’ll talk about that in a separate post. Although I’ve yet to have any cancellations, it’s clear that folks are thinking about.

Here’s a Quicktime video showing the transition in the Loop Current from May 7 until yesterday:

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For Roffer’s complete analysis as of May 20, 2010, see after the jump.

I haven’t been actively blogging for a while, but am going to try my best to get back on it. You may have heard that oil-related tarballs have been washing up on Keys beaches.

Below are the latest images from my friend Mitch Roffer showing the oil in relation to the loop current. For more information, visit his Roff’s Ocean Forecasting site.

Color Analysis of Deep Water Horizon Spill from Mitch Roffer

May 18 Satellite Analysis of Deep Water Horizon Oil Spill and Loop Current.

While that is true, according to the USCG, the tarballs are not related to the Deep Water Horizon event that occurred last month in the Gulf of Mexico. What is clear, however, is that the oil is in the loop current and on its way. From here on the ground, I can tell you that Haliburton is setting up shop and getting ready to do what they can to clean the mess up. I can also say that scientist from the government are here trying to determine what they are going to try to save.

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Mitch has been providing this type of in-depth analysis since the event occurred in conjunction with the University of Miami and University of South Florida.

I’ll be posting daily updates when I can or you can subscribe to Mitch’s service. He’s one of the few people capable of doing this type of analysis and thus far, everything that he’s been pointing to (which coincidentally is typically refuting what the government authorities are saying) has come to pass.

I fear this is not only going to be disastrous for us here, but wonder what will come to pass for countries like Cuba (which has been criticized in the past for allowing the Chinese to explore for oil in deepwater)

For Roffer’s detailed analysis and video imagery, go to the jump. He and his staff and colleagues deserve full credit for producing and disseminating this information.

Gary Parsons, right, and Capt. Chris Jones recieve their trophies at the prize giving for the 2010 Spring All-Tackle Bonefish Tournament.

Unfounded reports of massive bonefish kills from our recent record cold winter were put to rest during the 14th Annual Spring All Tackle Bonefish Tournament. Seven weight fish (bones over 8 pounds) were officially weighed and released during 3 days of intense bonefishing. Thirteen releases were also carded during windy and cloudy conditions.

Angler Cathy Hill with 12-pound tippet IGFA world record permit caught aboard Freelancer with Capt. Ted Lund in Key West, Florida.

Although I don’t agree with recent moves on the part of some anglers and guides to make permit a catch-and-release only fish in the State of Florida, I do agree with the new move on behalf of the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust to gather more scientific date on the fish, their population and movements. Thanks to a four year grant by sunglass maker Costa Del Mar, now that move is becoming a reality. To learn more about the program and sign up for a tagging kit, click here.

13 TARPON LEAD TO LUCKY WIN IN KEY WEST FISHING TOURNAMENT KICKOFF

KEY WEST, Florida Keys — Thirteen proved to be a lucky number for angler Tom D’Amato of Wakefleld, N.J., who released 13 tarpon in the Key West Fishing Tournament kickoff that ended March 14.

D’Amato won the tournament’s award for the most tarpon releases while his guide, Paul D’Antoni, garnered outstanding captain honors.

“The first day we hooked 11 tarpon and landed seven of them, and the second day we hooked eight tarpon and landed six,” said D’Antoni.