Increasing temperatures, increasing fish
By Capt. Ric Liles
Fishing Columnist
Fishing continues to get better with each passing day as we continue to get back to normal on our water temperatures. The variety of species willing to cooperate with us as anglers is also growing larger.
This past week we were able to catch redfish, shark, grouper, black drum, trout and Spanish mackerel. The trout, silver trout and spotted sea trout along with the Spanish mackerel took center stage, but all of the species mentioned made themselves available for the taking. The trout seemed to want soft plastics baits more than the live baits, but we did catch a few on greenbacks and shrimp. The color scheme that worked best for me was anything that had chartreuse or pink in it. I actually found an old bag of bass assassin paddle tail baits and that was just what the doctor ordered. I took my two daughters out on a fishing trip one afternoon and we were able to limit out very quickly using only artificial baits. They really made me proud.
The Spanish mackerel on the other hand went totally bonkers for nice frisky sardines. It’s amazing how much different it is in Tampa Bay when we have sardines and threadfins to fish with. I found the biggest macs while grouper fishing in 20 feet of water, but also found plenty of mackerel in the five to 10-foot range as well. Another great sign I saw this past week is we finally saw the tarpon I saw rolling.
I look for the bait to start to move onto the grass flats here in the next week or two. Some of the grass flats in Tampa Bay are already starting to show a little bait on them, but nothing like what’s around the corner. With the bait showing up and the fish starting to eat it is a great time to get out and get on the water. If you have kids and want to take them fishing and feel confident that you are going to catch fish, now is the time to go.
Until next time, good luck and be safe on the water. Remember, don’t let your kid be the one that got away. Take them fishing.
-Opinions expressed in this column are those of the writer only and not that of the publisher.
