Fall Season at CBFL

Greetings CBFL Members and Friends,

With Labor day fall just around the corner, www.thebaylab.org is gearing up for the Fall season.

St. Mary's County Public Schools usually begin the second week of September.

The Purple Martins are leaving St. George Island to start their trip to South America.

They had a great nesting season and I guestimate that 50 new birds are now winging their way south from the Bay Lab.

All the young Ospreys are now flying and beginning to learn their trade as fish catchers. As the hunger pangs increase so does their efficiency rate. The Island Creek, which splits St. George Island will produce about 30 new birds. The adults will begin to leave in September after the young can fish successfully for themselves. The young birds will also go down the 77th parallel in October to over winter in the uppermost parts of South America. It still amazes me that the adults leave early and the young birds follow a month later.

The crab business in the Lower Potomac is slow now with males being advertised for $150 per bu. along the roadsides. I am sure the Patuxent River and Wicomico River crabs are higher because of the quality of the crabs in those two rivers. New crab regulations will come into effect in October in an effort to conserve about 35% of the female ( Sook ) populations in both Maryland and Virginia.

Trolling and bottom fishing has been great locally. We have plenty of Stripers, Bluefish and Atlantic Croakers. We have also had our full share of Sea- Nettles so far this year.

Please save this date......SEPTEMBER 26th -- a Friday evening -- for

Chesapeake Bay Field Lab's " Characters of The Chesapeake " Gala at The Paul Hall Center in Piney Point, Md. 20674

Dress this year is Nautical Casual and will again include the famous "Shipwreck" punch aboard the skipjack, another noteworthy dinner under the culinary direction of John Hetmanski & Company and the continuation of the Virtual Voyage Spoof to be commandeered this year by another couple Characters of the Chesapeake.

Remember: "It's Our bay, Let's Pass It On"

Capn Jack and 1st mate Fulchiron