Backwater fishing around Anna Maria Island remains consistently good.
Fishing the morning incoming tide is producing good action on the top catch-and-release species — snook and trout — and the stronger the tide, the better the bite.
The snook and trout are responding well to live bait offerings, as well as artificials.
As for the snook, I’m not seeing large concentrations of fish, rather they are spread out over larger areas. This means pulling the anchor more often and moving along the flats.
The bottom line: We’re still catching good numbers of fish but with effort.
As for the trout, the opposite applies. Catching a dozen or more trout in a spot is occurring frequently and many catches are in the new slot range of 15-19 inches. Most are either within or over-slot.
Although the spotted sea trout harvest remains closed due to a prolonged red tide from 2017, the number of fish proves our population is coming back healthy.
Let’s hope it stays that way.
For those who desire to take fish home for dinner, the Spanish mackerel bite is strong. Anchoring over structure in Tampa Bay and free-lining live shiners on a long shank hook is yielding respectable numbers of the high-speed predators.
If you plan on keeping a few for dinner, make sure to bleed them while they’re on ice in the fish box.
Also, they’re best if eaten the day they are caught.
Capt. Warren Girle is finding good action in Sarasota Bay using live shiners as bait. Casting shiners around residential docks is yielding slot-size and over-slot catch-and-release redfish.
An occasional flounder is being caught with a weight added to the rig.
Moving to the flats, catch-and-release snook are coming to live shiners on the hook along mangroves shorelines and oyster bars.
Lastly, on deeper grass flats in the middle of Sarasota Bay, Girle is reporting a variety of species — Spanish mackerel, bluefish, ladyfish, jack crevalle and catch-and-release spotted seatrout.
Capt. Aaron Lowman is finding plenty of catch-and-release snook action for his clients in southern Tampa Bay. Casting live shiners along mangroves, oyster bars and sand bars is producing excellent action on the linesiders.
While fishing shallow flats for snook, Lowman is hooking into other catch-and-release species, including redfish and some large trout.
Fishing deeper grass flats is bringing a bite from catch-and-release trout, as well as Spanish mackerel and jack crevalle.
Capt. David White says inshore fishing in Tampa Bay is producing vast amounts of Spanish mackerel for hungry anglers. A combination of some fluorocarbon leader, a long shank hook and a live shiner can be deadly for the macks. Fishing structure or deep grass flats provides the best action.
Catch-and-release snook and redfish keep White’s anglers busy in Tampa Bay. Shallow grass flats — where oyster bars or mangroves are present — provide good habitat to find these fish.
Moving offshore, White’s fishers are enjoying plenty of action on red grouper, as well as mangrove and yellowtail snapper. All three are being caught while bottom fishing with live or frozen bait.
Lastly, live shiners fished on the surface around offshore wrecks is luring blackfin tuna to the hook.
At the Rod & Reel Pier, Jim Malfese says anglers using live shrimp are hooking up with catch-and-release redfish, as well black drum and flounder. Catch-and-release snook also are being caught in this fashion.
Casting jigs tipped with fresh-cut pieces of shrimp is working well for ladyfish, jack crevalle and even pompano.
Lastly, silver spoons or Gotcha plugs are attracting a mack bite at the pier.
Send photos and reports to fish@islander.org.