I visited with Karen Meador on Thursday. She is the Texas Parks and Wildlife biologist responsible for Aransas Bay. She said they have just completed their spring gillnet survey that lasted for ten weeks. She won't have the final numbers available to the public until about July 13th. The early results show what we pretty much know, there are very few trout in the bay. She said the patterns they are seeing is what they usually see in the early fall. The salinity in Copano and Aransas bays is holding at thirty five parts per thousand. That is above what is normal for the gulf much less the bay system. She said the guides are having trouble putting clients on fish also. Perry Trail, in charge of Corpus Christi Bay, is finding his surveys are not much different than those that Karen is seeing.
It is strange when you see so few crab traps out in the bays while boating and very seldom do you see a shrimp boat. She did admit that opening Cedar Bayou would help, but what is needed most is a whole lot of rain.