The arrival of tarpon is creating a buzz among anglers near and around Anna Maria Island.
Respectable numbers of silver kings are making a showing along the Gulf beaches of Anna Maria Island and Longboat and Egmont keys.
Most anglers hunting the silver king are opting to use live crabs or threadfin herring as bait, although having a few hand-sized pinfish or large shiners in the bait well is a smart move. Tarpon can get finicky, so having a variety of baits is advantageous. Reports coming in are of catches 60-100 pounds, although fish in the 150-pound class can be had.
Moving to the backcountry, targeting snook is going quite well. Many snook are staging on the flats, preparing for the migration to the beaches to spawn.
In some of the staging areas for snook, I’m seeing respectable numbers of fish congregating. In these areas, you’ll find many snook measuring 20-26 inches — and they’re the most apt to take a bait. Larger fish are present, although they are not as abundant as the smaller ones, and they’re also smarter. So don’t be discouraged if they snub their nose at your bait.
Patience and determination is a must when hunting big snook. With luck, you may convince a large fish to eat your bait.
Also on the flats, redfish are coming to the bait when cast up close to the mangrove shorelines. Lucky anglers are stumbling across schooling reds on occasion in open water. These fish are apt to eat bait as they become competitive when bunched together in large numbers. Just be careful not to spook them, they will move off the flat, venture into deeper water, and they’ll be hard to find.
Moving offshore, wreck fishing is the highlight. Blackfin tuna and amberjack are being caught frequently. Casting live shiners in these areas is resulting in great action on medium-heavy spinning gear. And don’t forget to have a few live crabs in the bait well in the event you come across permit foraging close to the surface over the wreck.
Bottom fishing around ledges is proving to be good, especially for mangrove snapper, yellowtail snapper and red grouper.
On my Just Reel charters, I’m witnessing some of the best snook fishing I’ve seen all year. Mornings resulting in 30-40 snook are common. Casting live shiners along mangrove shorelines is working best for my clients. The higher the tide, the farther back in the bushes you need to cast your bait. I’m also seeing redfish on the hook while targeting snook.
Lastly, spotted seatrout are being caught on the deeper grass flats.
Capt. David White is on patrol for tarpon along the beaches of Anna Maria Island. Early morning adventures are resulting in multiple hookups with many fish being reeled to the boat. Live pass crabs or threadfin hearing are working well as bait.
When not tarpon fishing, White is venturing offshore in the Gulf of Mexico for some wreck fishing. He reports seeing many blackfin tuna being caught, as well as amberjack.
White reports that fishing over hard-bottom areas and ledges is working well, especially for mangrove snapper, yellowtail snapper and red grouper.
Capt. Warren Girle is guiding sport fishers to respectable numbers of tarpon cruising the beaches of Longboat Key and Anna Maria Island. Casting live crabs into schooling tarpon is working best. Slowly and quietly approaching the schools so as not to disturb the finicky fish is the key to success. Most catches are 60-100 pounds.
When they tire of tarpon fishing, Girle is working the flats of Sarasota Bay with his clients. Live shiners as bait are attracting plenty of snook and spotted seatrout to the hook. Girle’s putting anglers on quite a few redfish when casting baits around areas where oyster bars exist.
Jim Malfese at the Rod & Reel Pier is seeing greater numbers of snook arriving at the pier as the days grow longer on the approach of summer. Many large snook, as well as quite a few smaller ones, are taking up residence under the shade of the pier. Pier fishers are hooking into the snook using a variety of baits — live shrimp, pinfish and ladyfish.
Fishers using live shrimp as bait are hooking into a variety of other species, including mangrove snapper, sheepshead and some redfish. Casting baits from the pier with a bottom rig is resulting in small sharks, measuring around 3 feet.
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