As we wrap up April and slide into May, inshore fishing around Anna Maria Island is really heating up, just like the temperatures.
With water temps finally reaching 78-80 degrees, inshore fish such as snook, redfish and spotted seatrout are finding their comfort zone. It’s apparent to fishers by the way they are biting.
Live bait is quickly being devoured when cast around mangrove shorelines, oyster bars and shallow grass flats with sandy potholes.
Snook and redfish are lurking on the shallows and have one thing on their minds — feeding.
Now is the time to get out before the temperatures rise, putting a damper on flats fishing.
Spotted seatrout are following suit with most action coming from deeper grass flats in Tampa Bay south to Sarasota Bay. As the trout migrate toward the beaches to spawn, they can be found in the passes and along the Gulf beaches where structure exists. Don’t forget the slot-limit of 15-19 inches on trout includes one fish over the slot per person unless you’re in a boat, where it is only one fish over the slot per boat.
Don’t make the mistake of keeping more than your limit of trout as the fine can be a hefty one.
And since we’re speaking about rules, set a reminder that snook season ends May 1, which should give a needed break to all the fish of 28-33 inches.
Moving to the nearshore and offshore action, reports of red grouper being caught are frequent. Both live and frozen baits are yielding plenty of bites in depths of 100 feet or more.
Mangrove snapper are being caught while fishing offshore, as well as around nearshore structure inside 9 miles. If you’re fishing the artificial reefs, keep your eyes peeled for kingfish and cobia as they begin their move throughout our region.
On my Just Reel charters, I’m enjoying the inshore bite as snook are cooperating nicely during the last stage of the moon in April.
I’m seeing a pretty decent linesider bite with several keeper fish being caught, as well as the normal 20-26 inch fish filling the gaps for sport fishers.
Redfish are mixed in with the snook bite, which is quite entertaining and adds variety to the catch. Most reds are measuring 22-27 inches, while a few shorties are being returned to the water.
Spotted seatrout are the most prominent bite, with many fish over 20 inches being caught. There are still plenty of slot-size fish measuring 15-19 inches to put in the cooler for dinner, while the larger “gator” trout are providing great photo opportunities before the release.
Fishing along the beaches in the Gulf of Mexico is yielding action on Spanish mackerel although that bite is day to day as the fish seem to be on the move.
Capt. Johnny Mattay says inshore fishing is great right now, especially for snook. Snook season is coming to an end and Mattay says he’s happy to close out the season with plenty of daily catches, including quite a few slot-size keepers.
Mattay is working snook in a variety of places, from Gulf beaches all the way into the back bays and around the mangroves and oyster bars.
Redfish action is strong, with large examples in the 40-inch range as well as slot fish 18-27 inches. To put clients on the reds, Mattay is fishing mangrove shorelines and oyster bars during the high tides.
Spotted seatrout also are biting well for Mattay. He’s finding steady action on most deeper grass flats while using live shiners as bait, which yields countless fish over 20 inches and plenty in the slot of 15-19 inches.
Moving offshore, red grouper and snapper are rounding out the bite and bottom fishing with live shiners or pinfish works well, says Mattay.
Finally, Mattay says using surface poppers is producing action, especially on kingfish and cobia.
Capt. David White is catching plenty of inshore species on his charters while fishing throughout Tampa Bay and southward into Sarasota Bay. He reports that casting live shiners throughout the shallow back country is leading to good numbers of snook in all sizes.
Redfish also are being caught in the same areas with numerous slot-size fish taken by White’s clients on most days. Mangrove shorelines, oyster bars and high tides are the perfect recipe, according to White, as he is excited to get out there and catch some fish.
Deeper grass flats are providing plenty of action for spotted seatrout, with many upper-slot fish being caught by White’s charter fishers. In the mix are jacks and ladyfish to round out the bite.
While fishing nearshore in the Gulf of Mexico, White is finding kingfish and a few cobia for his anglers. The kings are more consistent, while the cobia bite is random. He says live shiners are attracting the kings, while a juicy pinfish is working on the cobia.
And don’t forget, we roll out the red carpet for some visiting tarpon in May.
Get ready for the silver kings.
Send photos and fish tales to fish@islander.org.