November 7, 2014 — “This is unbelievable,” Cooper said of the bounty. “We didn’t expect it this year.” Scallops typically live for only two years, so the size of the population depends heavily on the number of spawning adults in the previous year. The Vineyard bay scallop harvest has declined over the decades, but extensive hatchery and nursery programs run by the Martha’s Vineyard Shellfish Group have helped keep the Island industry alive.
At around 6 a.m. Wednesday, Cooper Gilkes and his son Daniel were in their kitchen in Edgartown wearing orange and yellow waders, drinking coffee and getting ready for another morning on the water. The longtime fishermen have been enjoying an especially strong start to the commercial bay scalloping season in Edgartown, which began Oct. 27.
Cape Pogue was the destination Wednesday morning. After motoring out of the harbor and into Cape Pogue Bay, Daniel cut the engine and Cooper began throwing the heavy dredges into the water, four on each side of the 25-foot Parker boat, which floated quietly down current.
The motor started up again and after a few minutes of dredging the bay floor, Cooper smiled. “Clean fishing,” he said. “I can tell by the way the drags are rattling.” The first dredges came up filled to the brim with bay scallops. Daniel hoisted them up with a rope and pulley and dumped them out onto the wooden culling board spanning the width of the boat.
On deck, the scallops gently opened and snapped shut, showing their rows of tiny blue photosensors. The men got to work separating the adults and throwing back the younger ones and the empty shells, along with clumps of seaweed, crabs, starfish and the occasional flounder.
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