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The
Upper Indian River Lagoon & its Fishery
The Indian River Lagoon System (IRL) took 240,000 years
to form, and is designated as the most diverse estuary
in all of North America. It is well known for its unique
plant, fish, fowl, and shoreline animal life. The Indian
River Lagoon contains 20 percent of the mangrove forests
found in the eastern United States, and provides habitat
for 700 species of fish, 310 species of birds, and is
home to 1,350 species of plants in its waters or around
its shoreline. Its waters are home to 33 threatened
or endangered species.
Bordered by coastal barrier islands which are broken
up by inlets, its widest and longest bodies of water
are in north Brevard County. The lagoon system extends
from Ponce de Leon Inlet in Volusia County south to
Jupiter Inlet in Palm Beach County, and stretches along
40 percent of Florida's East Coast. Its length is over
150 miles long! Its width ranges from 1.5 to 5 miles
wide, averages 3 to 4 feet in depth, and the Intercoastal
Waterway channel proper averages 11 to 12 feet deep,
or less. In the Brevard County area the lagoon's depth
is regulated most by rain, evaporation, and the strength,
duration, and the direction of wind.
Salinity levels in the lagoon system vary according
to proximity to the ocean inlets, as well as by evaporation
and rain levels. Water moving through the Canaveral
locks does not noticeably affect lagoon water levels.
Although there is some current in northern Mosquito
Lagoon, areas south of Haulover to the Pineda Causeway
are generally the most brackish and have little if no
tidal flow.
There are seven species of aquatic seagrass living in
the lagoon's waters, and they are a vital keystone to
all of its marine life. After decades of misuse, stormwater
runoff, septic tank leakage, and prop scars are becoming
problems. Please do not pollute the lagoon(s) or damage
the seagrasses. Don’t throw trash into the water
or drive motorized watercraft in areas they aren’t
designed to be in. While enjoying this great ecosystem
please leave “small footprints” to ensure
the fish, flora & fauna will remain for future generations!
We anglers must also take responsibility for our part
in preserving our exceptional red drum fishery by protecting
our breeder-size redfish. Treat them gently & with
respect. A mature female red drum can produce up to
2 million eggs per mating and may spawn more than once
per season. Removing a large male vertically from the
water during the mating season may inhibit its ability
to participate in the spawn.
Because of the northern Indian River Lagoon’s
uniqueness, a land-locked haven for large redfish has
developed. Unlike most coastal inshore areas of the
eastern United States and the Gulf of Mexico, Brevard
County’s mature red drum rarely enter the ocean.
Most stay in the upper IRL year-round and spawn here
as well. As a result, Brevard has a fantastic shallow
water red drum fishery, perfectly suited to sightfishing
for tailing bull redfish!
Capt. Robert Jaspers
Capt. Robert A. Jaspers ~ USCG #955013 ~ flatstime@cfl.rr.com
321.626.0104 |
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