In a letter to shellfishers dated Jan. 13, the shellfish constable said the abundance of juvenile scallops in the pond led her to close the fishery as of 4 p.m. that day.
The Vineyard’s commercial scallopers celebrated a banner year this winter, with some fishermen reporting they harvested the meatiest bay scallops they have seen in decades.
Last year’s bay scallop season ended with mixed results, but fishermen had a reason to be hopeful. In the water there was a large amount of immature scallops that were too young to be harvested.
Recreational scalloping outside of Tisbury’s ponds is set to begin Oct. 19 and commercial scalloping Oct. 21, following a town select board vote Tuesday night.
The select boards in Edgartown, Oak Bluffs and Chilmark all voted this week to set their scalloping dates.
Jeff Canha is a fifth-generation Islander who has been on the water since he was born.