PASCO COUNTY, Fla. – What began as the strongest scallop season in recent history in Pasco County did not end the way many local charter captains had hoped.
When the region’s longest scallop season opened on July 10, it quickly became clear that it was going to be a huge season, according to Captain Brandon Csaszar of Anclote Charters.
Spots that were previously spotty or held only small scallops were now filled with large mollusks and the swimmers reached their 10-gallon limit in just 45 minutes.
“Anywhere we went between 2 feet and 6 feet deep, we found 10 to 12 scallops per dive,” he described. “That’s unusual, that’s what it used to be like in Crystal River and Homosassa, but for Pasco County it’s been fantastic.”
On July 24, the FWC issued a temporary closure order and banned scallop fishing in Pasco County due to the presence of saxitoxins in the mollusks. At the time, charter captains had no idea if and when the season would reopen.
“I didn’t know if it would take a day, two days or more,” said Captain Brandon. “Then I kept having to cancel… and I gave up hope.”
During the more than month-long closure, Captain Brandon said he kept in close contact with all of his prospective clients, but as days turned into weeks, he ended up losing a whopping 4 weeks of bookings, averaging 12-14 trips per week. He says many families traveled to Pasco County just to go scallop fishing and canceled their trips.
“Not only did this put a stop to scallop fishing for our business, but it also cost the region money,” he said.
When the season reopened on August 28, it ultimately did not have the impact Captain Brandon had hoped for. By then, children were back in school and families were no longer looking for summer vacation activities. Additionally, he says, some families did not trust that the water would be safe and the scallops would be safe once the season reopened.
“The fact that they ended the season this way and then resumed when the kids were back in school completely changed our business,” he said.
Captain Brandon estimates that he was able to recover about 10% of the canceled charters when the season reopened. While the weekends were full with the local families rebooking, the weekdays were not busy.
He says if this happens again, he hopes to see more transparency, clearer communication from the FWC and the state, and easier access to water testing results so charter captains can have the most up-to-date information.
“I think more clarity and more communication from the top down is important because this only affected the scallops themselves and the poison did not affect the waterways,” he said. “That was a big problem for us, so I was unable to recoup the lost business.”
The scallop season ended on September 24. The FWC has not yet announced the opening date for the 2025 season.
