Quick take
October delivered the gnarliest conditions we’ve seen all year—storms, surge, and near-zero vis. Then the ocean flipped the script: a hammerhead appeared feet from the camera, we finally captured a mullet run, a bluefish school blitzed through, and the month ended with a ghostly underwater vortex swirling beneath the pier. Oh, and a squid cameo, mystery jelly, and larval porkfish drift-by kept the jump-scares coming. 🎃
Highlights you’ll see
- Hammerhead jump-scare: A massive shark materializes out of the gloom—true horror-movie moment.
- Mullet run (first on camera!): Schools push through the murk, triggering chase behavior.
- Bluefish blitz: Rare for this cam—big school, fast strikes.
- Old friends return: Horse-eye & almaco jacks, gray triggerfish, black margate, Irish pompano, and more.
- Micro & mystery life: Larval porkfish, comb/cannonball jelly?, and a squid cruise the frame.
- Water tornado: A spinning subsurface vortex whirls up sand and bait like a ghostly funnel.
Species & sightings (October list)
Pelagics & predators: Hammerhead, barracuda, remora (sharksucker), nurse shark
Jacks & runners: Horse-eye jack, crevalle jack, almaco/amber (ID uncertain), bar jacks, blue runners, yellow jack, lookdowns, Atlantic bumper
Reef & pier regulars: Gray triggerfish, black margate, porkfish (incl. larval), porgy, grunts, mojarra, mangrove snapper, sergeant major, doctorfish, ocean surgeonfish, orangespotted filefish, scrawled cowfish, queen angelfish (juvenile), regal demoiselle, blueheaded wrasse, brown chromis, blenny, spot tail
Others: Spadefish, chubs, parrotfishes (yellowtail), porcupine puffer, lobster
Invertebrates & drifters: Jellyfish (cannonball??? & comb), squid
Oddities: Underwater vortex / water tornado
Still missing this month: Spanish hogfish, sheepshead, highhat, octopus, soapfish, dusky damsels, permit, pompano, planehead filefish, lemon shark, smooth trunk, grouper, rainbow parrotfish
📝 If you can help with almaco vs amberjack or confirm the jelly species, drop a time-stamp and note in the comments.
Field notes: why so many surprises in bad vis?
- Storm surge = bait wrangling: Murky, turbulent water compresses bait along structure (pier pilings), drawing predators tight to the camera.
- Fall migrations: Mullet runs and bluefish pushes peak with onshore winds, making blitzes more likely even in low vis.
- Vortex formation: Cross-currents + piling geometry can spin a localized eddy, lifting sand/bait and creating that tornado effect.
FAQs
Was that really a hammerhead?
Yes—head profile and approach match a hammerhead coming within just a few feet of the lens.
Which jelly was it—cannonball or comb?
Behavior and silhouette suggest cannonball for one pass and comb jelly for another, but ID is provisional due to murk. Comment with time-stamps if you can confirm.
Why are bluefish a big deal here?
Historically rare on this cam—seeing a school (not just a lone fish) is newsworthy.
What’s the safest way to watch details in murk?
Use 1080p, turn up screen gamma/brightness, and scrub slowly—predators often fade in from the edge.
