Florida Shorts 2

– Stories from Paradise

“Jumping for Joy!”

Florida Shorts 2 – Stories from Paradise – finds jumping joy in a February warm spell on a flat, glassy bay, as the balmy air hovers around us like a silent butterfly. Here, once again, there is light, just as I introduced in last week’s blog, in the connections we find everywhere in nature and in people. Today’s Light Lesson is in the joy we can find everywhere. It is waiting for eyes that see.

My husband, Tom, and I took our first canoe trip out of the canal. Ahhh! The afternoon sun felt so good on our backs, warming our neck and shoulder muscles as we paddled smoothly through the light current of tide carrying us out toward the spoil islands. We were mesmerized with the quiet, still beauty.

Leaping Fish

But suddenly, the water is alive with fish! Leaping! Flying! Soaring! Then plopping – plopping on their silver sides – back into the water!

“Did you see that?”

Our paddles are suspended in midair, dripping into the dark green water surrounding us. Again! Fish vaulting out of the water!

“What IS that?”

One fish leaps up-and-out four times in a row! And another follows! Again, and again! It is so joyful! We are open mouth, slack jawed, smiling and laughing till our cheeks hurt!

Games in Paradise

There are even more now! It looks like an epidemic! No, it’s a game! Which can leap highest? Farthest? Most times? There are silver scales shining in the sun and the water reflections double their image! What a show!

The plopping and splashing and smacking sounds are all around us. Yet my husband has not even bothered to reach for his fishing pole. It is as if the fish are about to leap into our canoe! We laugh out loud as we picture the boat filled with fish that just jumped right in with us! We didn’t have to do a thing!

“This is livin’!” hooted Tom. “A fishing paradise!”

Stories and Discoveries

We later discovered that these leaping fish are called mullets. And they are very important to the balance of nature in the waters of Florida. The adult mullets keep the water clean because they feed on decaying algae.

On the other hand, predator fish feed on the mullets; and they make a nice meal for the osprey, which are often seen flying overhead with mullet in their talons.

As for human consumption, fishermen like to catch them because they make a tasty smoked paté. Moreover, they were at one time harvested for fertilizer.

Alas, they don’t go about leaping into passing boats.

Questions

Anyone along a harbor in Florida can tell you, “The question everyone always asks, is: Why do they do it? Why do the mullet jump like that?

The easiest explanation is that the predator fish are chasing them. And that is good to know, because a wise fisherman will cast his plug to the rear of the jumping mullet school and can come up with a redfish, snook, or jack fish… which are very good, very tasty eating.

No One Knows

However, predator fish are not always chasing the mullet. Sometimes the mullet simply drift about in the water, and all at once, they leap out of the water! For no apparent reason! And they can leap as high as four feet! No one seems to know why.

There are many conjectural ideas and much speculation. To cool off? A digestive routine? Shaking off parasites? A mating ritual?

Whatever the reason, they are so much fun to watch. Here is a two minute video of mullets jumping, and a discussion of how and why they may be doing it.

One old fisherman commented to us,

“They’re just happy! And they can’t contain themselves. They’re jumping for joy!”

That fits! Jumping for joy!

Light On!