Anna Maria redfish magic spices up fishing
If Chef Paul Prudhomme were fishing in Anna Maria Sound this week, he’d definitely experience some “Redfish Magic.”
Schooling redfish are herding like cattle into our local bays from the Gulf of Mexico. And there’s no shortage of redfish cowboys in tow of the herds. If you have a school of reds all to yourself, consider yourself lucky. If you feel the urge to tell your buddies, fight it. Put that cellphone away, too. Many a spot has been cleaned out after bragging on the catch.
Varying sizes of fish are making up these schools, although a school will typically contain mostly the same-sized fish. For instance, you might hear a redfish junky woefully bragging, “We hit a school of reds but they were all over slot.” Or, “Every fish in the school was a rat, but we caught 50 of them.” Woefully all the bragging only means he found fish but came home empty-handed. Anyway, there seems to be a pattern for the braggers and the reds.
Catches this week are occurring on live baits and artificials. I’m catching reds on live shiners either free-lined or fished under a popping cork. You can also use artificials, such as Gulp shrimp, DOA Cal jigs, or the ever-infamous gold spoon. Even redfish like a little bling and a gold spoon does the trick.
Lastly, don’t forget to get the cast-iron skillet seasoned up for a big meal of blackened redfish — make chef Paul proud.
Capt. Warren Girle is still producing limits of mangrove snapper for his clients. Nearby some of the artificial reefs and ledges in the Gulf of Mexico, Girle is finding mangoes 12-16 inches with regularity. Live and fresh-cut shiners, either free-lined or weighted, are producing a bite.
While fishing the reefs, Girle is finding Spanish mackerel, small sharks and even the occasional snook. Blue runners and small grouper join the list of species.
On the flats, Girle is on patrol for schooling reds. Slot and over-slot reds are being found on flats from Terra Ceia Bay down to south Sarasota Bay. Live shiners free-lined or fished under a cork are your best bet.
Finally, deeper grass flats are holding spotted seatrout. Live shiners combined with a popping cork, slowly worked across the surface is producing the bite.
Jim Malfese at the Rod & Reel Pier is seeing limits of mangrove snapper being filleted at the cleaning table on a daily basis. Most pier fishers are using live shrimp to hook up with these panfish of the Gulf. Most catches are falling between 10-14 inches, although larger fish are visible under the pier.
Snook are being landed by experienced anglers who know how to wrangle a big fish on the hook around the pilings. More over-slot fish are being caught than slot-fish. Live baits such as shiners, pinfish and select shrimp will entice the keepers. For the trophies, ladyfish are a good bet.
Finally, Spanish mackerel are still biting, although timing is everything. According to Malfese, “they’re here one minute, and gone the next.” This being said, you should have a rod rigged and ready while at the R&R. Work the other targets with bait and when the macks show up, start jigging.
Jonny Keyes at Island Discount Tackle is hearing all the talk about catching redfish. While most fishers like to use live bait such as shiners and shrimp for redfish, Keyes is using his fly rod. By using custom-tied flies made by Capt. Aaron Lowman, Keyes is hooking up on multiple reds per outing.
On a recent charter with Capt. Mac Gregory, Keyes was able to boat eight fish on the fly and six of them were over-slot. For equipment, Keyes is using an 8-weight fly rod. For line he likes a weight forward combined with a 30-pound tapered leader. And if you’re wondering about what fly to use, the most hookups occurred while using a fly called “Dead Head Thread.”
Capt. Rick Gross of Fishy Business Charters is also targeting schooling redfish. Gross is finding schools on shallow grass flats around mangrove shorelines and oyster bars. Once the fish are located and they’re staying in one place, Gross is casting live free-lined shiners into the mass, resulting in slot and over-slot reds.
Mangrove snapper are still being flung over the gunwale of Gross’ boat, the Fishy Business. He’s putting limits of keeper snapper in the cooler for clients. Again, live shiners are the bait of choice. For the snapper, Gross is putting whole baits and fresh-cut baits on the hook.
Finally, Gross is an avid snook fisherman and, if snook are in season, you can bet your lucky stars Gross is hunting for them. The “snooky sense” is turned on. Slot and just under-slot fish are being hooking up for Gross on free-lined live shiners.
Send high-resolution photos and fishing reports to fish@islander.org.