Mississippi Gulf Fishing Banks, Inc.
Partial Activity Report for the Period
November 10, 2006 thru April 12, 2007

Summary
During this period there was one construction trip and one monitoring trip. On February 27, 60 artificial reef pyramids were deployed in FH-2 and FH-1. On March 18, a monitoring trip was made to the Captain Kevin in FH-2. Deployments and other activity may be covered by the DMR under a separate report.


070227 Pyramids
On February 27, these 60 artificial reef pyramids were deployed in groups of five, creating 12 separate reefs split between FH-2 and FH-1. The contractor, Walter Marine (see http://www.reefmaker.com), deployed the Tetrahedron shaped units which are 8 feet tall with a 12 foot base and weigh 3.5 tons each. They have several designs available and this one is called “Florida Limestone” and sells for $995 each. This was the only design that did not move after hurricanes Ivan and Katrina. These units were deployed at the following coordinates:

FH-2:
444F2-070227A. 3005.471 8833.258 12440.2/47045.2/29616.8
445F2-070227B. 3004.711 8833.024 12442.6/47042.0/29616.2
446F2-070227C. 3004.736 8832.936 12443.5/47042.3/29617.1
447F2-070227D. 3005.169 8834.437 12428.2/47043.8/29603.6
448F2-070227E. 3005.066 8834.462 12428.0/47043.5/29602.9
449F2-070227F. 3005.077 8834.819 12424.3/47043.5/29599.7

FH-1:
450F1-070227G. 3004.046 8836.401 12408.4/47039.2/29579.1
451F1-070227H. 3004.039 8836.528 12407.1/47039.2/29577.8
452F1-070227I. 3003.960 8836.919 12403.1/47038.8/29573.7
453F1-070227J. 3003.552 8836.457 12407.9/47037.1/29576.4
454F1-070227K. 3003.227 8836.960 12402.7/47035.9/29570.0
455F1-070227L. 3003.134 8836.954 12402.8/47035.6/29569.7

060424 Capt Kevin, 433F2
Position: 30°05.099'N / 88°33.490'W
This 48' Shrimp Boat was deployed in FH-2 on April 24, 2006. This visit was made on March 18, 2007 and showed this year old reef to be developing well with growth, barnacles, algae, and other marine fouling. The high profile of this vessel’s rigging attracts many baitfish, however this visit seemed to lack the cigar minnows and blue runners that were seen on previous trips. Several large Sheepshead (12-15/4-12 lbs.) were observed as is common this time of year. Other fish sightings included Spades (30-40), Triggers (10-12/1-3 lbs.), a few Red Snapper (6-8/1-3 lbs.), Mangrove Snapper (2), Tomtates (100-150), and even a few juvenile Vermillion Snapper. No Grouper, large Snapper, or other real game fish were seen. A lone Spotfin Butterfly had taken residence and was eager to model for the camera. Video and Pictures were taken during the visit and can be viewed by Clicking Here. While visibility was decent (30-40 feet) over most of the upper reef, the lower 10-15 feet just above the bottom was very murky with zero visibility. This prevented visiting the newly deployed Pyramids to see how they were developing since they are only eight feet tall. Overall, the reef is performing well.










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