1: At Big Pier 60 in Clearwater, decent numbers of mangrove snapper have been caught this week. Flounder, speckled trout and pompano are also steady catches. Plenty of snook are cruising the pier and being targeted by the regular anglers, reports Big Pier 60 Bait & Tackle (727-462-6466). 
2: At Madeira Beach, nearshore, it’s mostly mangrove and lane snapper, porgies, red grouper and a few keeper gag grouper. Deeper offshore, the red snapper bite is going well out in deep water starting around 110 foot, but best at a depth of 140 to 160 foot. Mangrove snapper should be biting best at night on this full moon. Big gag grouper are also biting deep. On the pelagics, there’s some blackfin tuna, mahi and the occasional sailfish, reports Capt. Dylan Hubbard of Hubbard’s Marina (727-393-1947).
Fish of the Week
Mangrove Snapper: The summer time mangrove snapper bite is on for Tampa Bay area anglers. Snapper are biting, both inshore and offshore, on just about any structure. 
Strike Zone: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
3: At John’s Pass, mangrove snapper are biting around the bridge, docks, structure and along the jetties. Plenty of snook are biting in the pass and this full moon phase will have them active at night. Keeper size and over slot size redfish have been caught on the bottom around the docks in the pass. Speckled trout are biting at night around the lights and during the day on the inside flats and deeper cuts, reports Hubbard.
4: At Fort De Soto Park, there’s a lot of snook, mangrove snapper and flounder around the bridge and the marina. Deeper water edges around the smaller islands are also producing snapper. Tarpon in the 60 to 80-pound class have been rolling around the marina and Tierra Verde area. The grass flats around Tarpon Key have been good for mid-slot size redfish and the deeper pockets are producing trout. The piers are producing a few Spanish mackerel, snapper and sheepshead from the pier, along with snook around the jetty rocks. A few snook are also running the beach along with whiting. Flounder are biting on the drop-off near the beach at Bunces Pass, reports Capt. Claude Hinson at Tierra Verde Bait and Tackle (727-864-2108). 
5: Around the Sunshine Skyway and lower Tampa Bay, the tarpon fishing has been excellent leading up to the full moon this week. Plenty of fish are off the beaches and at the Sunshine Skyway. Mangrove snapper fishing really picked up this week around structure with clean water, reports Capt. John Gunter of Palmetto (863-838-5096). Snapper have shown up in good numbers for the summer months. The edges of the channel, the reefs in the bay, the bridges and just about any structure are producing good numbers. Look for speckled trout around deep grass and ledges adjacent to shallower water. There’s also a good number of redfish around the Perico Bayou area. Snook are just about anywhere, especially around the passes and the smaller bays, reports Capt. Shawn Crawford of Florida Sport Fishing Outfitters. (941-705-3160). 
6: At Anna Maria, good numbers of snook are in Longboat Pass and on the nearby beaches. Mangrove snapper are holding around the bridge and on structure in and around the pass. There’s also snapper around most of the other bridges. The deeper grass flats in the sound are producing trout. Some redfish are biting on the bottom around the docks and snook are pushing up against the mangroves on the higher tides, reports Crawford. Trout fishing has been good on the deeper edges of the Bulkhead area in Anna Maria Sound. Fishing live scaled sardines under a float or free lined have been the most productive. Big female spawning snook are staged up off the beaches and passes. Sight cast these fish with live pinfish or large scaled sardines, reports Gunter.
7: At St. Petersburg, mangrove snapper and a few keeper size gag grouper are biting along the channel, on the bay reefs and around the Skyway. Snapper are also biting around the bridges and most structure. The snook bite is good all over Fort De Soto from inside, to the passes and the beach. Terra Ceia and Tierra Verde are also good along the mangroves and deeper flats. The trout bite is very good on the deep grass flats of Pinellas Point and the Tarpon Key area. There’s still some tarpon around Tierra Verde, the Skyway and the passes, reports Larry Mastry at Mastry’s Tackle (727-896-8889).
8: In the north end of Tampa Bay, mangrove snapper have moved in good around the bridges and on most structure. Tarpon and sharks are around the bridges at night. The flats around both Picnic and Weedon Island are producing redfish and snook on the incoming tides. Trout are staging in the deeper water edges of the flats. Cobia are running the east shore of the bay and on some of the tripod markers. There’s also been some tripletail on the markers. Some pompano and Spanish mackerel are in the lower part of the bay and also some pompano have been caught at the St. Pete Pier, reports Gandy Bait & Tackle (813-839-5551).
At Boca Grande, the tarpon bite is getting better. There’s fish on the beach, in the pass and pretty much everywhere, but west winds have thinned the numbers a bit. That being said, the bite should be very good on this full moon phase. Snook fishing is excellent at night on live bait around the docks and passes. Numerous over slot size snook up to 41-inches have been caught this week. Plenty of mangrove snapper are also biting around the passes, oyster bars and at the trestle. Big trout are biting in the deeper holes on the flat, reports Capt. Greg Penix of Lakeland (863-860-2502). 
At Fort Pierce, kingfish in the 5 to 25-pound range are biting offshore on the 80 foot bar on slow trolled live baits. A few cobia are also in the mix. The bottom bite for mangrove snapper is good around a depth of 70 to 85 feet on frozen sardines and fresh cut grunt. At the inlet, snook are hitting live baits in the pocket off the south jetty. Inside the inlet, trout are biting around the docks at night on live and D.O.A shrimp. The south bridge is producing some tarpon at night in the lights. Snapper are also biting around the bridges and along the channel edges in the river, reports Clint Walker at the Fishing Center of St. Lucie (772-465-7637).
Compiled By Michael Wilson/Ledger Correspondent 

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