Sarasota

May 15, 2008 Sarasota Florida Fishing Report By Capt. Bob Smith

The big action is King mackerel on the "M" artificial reefs when it's not too windy. Everyone is finding plenty of live bait and pulling hardware will get you fish.

Not much happening on the big Tarpon migration along the beach plus the strong on-shore winds makes it hard to see them. They are at Boca, so we can expect them any day now. We need an east wind to keep the surf calm.

We did jump a nice twenty pound tarpon while fishing the docks for reds and snook. I call the small tarpon resident tarpon and you may find them any time and any place. I have reports that some fifty pounders are being jumped at night under the New Pass Bridge.

It has been mostly spotted sea trout up to 23 inches on the bay, but a lot are under size. Spanish mackerel, bluefish, flounder, black seabass, redfish, gray snapper and plenty of ladyfish are the bulk of what we are catching. The top bait for me has been the DOA 3" shrimp, natural or with gold specs. The bay is covered with pinfish and you need to use a lot of live bait to hook one good fish. The DOA lures work well most of the time, but especially well when the pinfish are thick. The pins attack them but they stand up well and give the bigger fish a chance to find them. Blowfish are another story, but I have not seen any lately.

Work your DOA slowly with an occasional pop or you can use it with a popping float. Most fish will eat a DOA lure and will not spit it out. If you do miss the fish, let it sit and the fish might come back for it, or another fish may grab it. When using DOA lures, a missed fish does not signal "Game Over".

Enjoy & Protect

My Website: http://www.sarasota-fla-fishing.com

Thank you!