Kelp and the King!

Got a question for you locals, I was down this past weekend for some fishing, we went out of Ft. Morgan, both Sat. and Sun. there was Kelp, or some sort of grass floating all over, the puzzling think to me is there was absolutely no minnows, Dolphin, Cobia...nothing around the huge mats of this stuff. One, what was the stuff, two where did it come from. I have lived and fished the Gulf between Destin and Ft. Morgan for over 40 years, I do not ever remember seeing grass like this and when I have seen grass it usually meant little minnows, Dolphin and maybe a Cobia. Also where were the Mackerel? We had zero cut-offs, and saw zero caught.

Thanks to all

The stuff we've been seeing comes out of the Louisiana marshes. It has broad leaves and bulbous roots. Never had any luck around the mats of it---it is indicative of flooding out of the Mississippi and an influx of muddy, fresh water. Don't have much in the way of kelp here in the Gulf.

that makes sense, thanks for the reply. It does puzzle me a little that no fish gather around the mats. oh well.

Water hyacinth is an invasive species with no known direct food value to fish or other animals except to decay.
http://aquaplant.tamu.edu/plant-iden...ater-hyacinth/

It is a freshwater plant, rampantly growing in the deltas of major river systems and individual plants are 'flushed out' into the gulf during periods of flood where they quickly die in the salt water.
Perhaps that's why no minnows or whatever much else around them...

Interesting, thanks for the info! I wonder if this Eco event had anything to do with the lack of King bite! We caught some snapper but no King, no cut-offs, no nothing! Fishing about 8-10 miles out hitched to a rig.

Sounds like all the freshwater coming out the mouth of the bay had the kings pushed away from where you were located.
Or they were under the surface layer of freshwater, down deeper.
Did you try trolling deeper?

no trolling at all. just free line

That could explain it. If there was a freshwater layer on top, the kings would be down deeper.
Or if the bait was pushed out of the area by the freshwater, the kings would follow.

That makes sense.