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Saltwater fishing: Flounder bite is turning on in Tampa Bay area – The Ledger

1 At Big Pier 60 in Clearwater, better numbers of Spanish mackerel have shown up and they’ve been caught every morning this week. Speckled trout and jack crevalle are biting through the day. Other notable catches include a black drum and a 34-inch snook at night over the weekend, reports Big Pier 60 Bait & Tackle (727-462-6466).
2 At Madeira Beach, nearshore, the Spanish mackerel are getting thicker along with some “schoolie” kingfish. Deeper offshore, the hogfish bite is picking up at a depth of 40 to 80 feet. Mangrove, lane and vermillion snapper, along with red grouper are biting best around the 80 to 100-foot mark, reports Capt. Dylan Hubbard of Hubbard’s Marina (727-393-1947).
3 At John’s Pass, the flounder bite has picked up in sandy patches adjacent to structure. Redfish and snook are thick in the pass and the bite is best using live baits on the incoming tides at night. During the day, cut bait on the bottom is best around the bridge and dock lines. Black drum have been caught on the bottom. Tarpon up to 80 to 100 pounds are still biting in the pass, reports Hubbard.
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4 At Fort De Soto Park, flounder are all over the docks and marina area. There’s plenty of Spanish mackerel, snook and juvenile tarpon. Mangrove snapper and pompano are biting around the bridge. On the flats, flounder are biting in the sand holes. Redfish and snook have been caught along the mangrove lines at high tide and in the cuts and holes at low tide. At the pier, Spanish mackerel, little tunny and pompano are biting. There are still a few snook along the beach, reports Capt. Claude Hinson of Tierra Verde Bait and Tackle (727-864-2108).
5 Around the Sunshine Skyway and lower Tampa Bay, the gag grouper bite has “turned on” along the shipping channel and on structure in the bay. There’s plenty of good size mangrove snapper. Schools of Spanish mackerel are chasing bait in the bay. The snook, redfish and trout bite “is as good as it gets” around Terra Ceia and Joe Bay, reports Capt. John Gunter of Palmetto (863-838-5096).
6 At Anna Maria, mangrove snapper are biting on the rock piles in Longboat Pass and structure around the Cortez and Manatee Avenue bridges. The passes and surrounding flats have a good snook bite. Speckled trout are biting in the potholes and along the deeper grass edges on the flats. The mouth of the Manatee River and some of the docks in the sound have a good redfish bite, reports Capt. Shawn Crawford of Florida Sport Fishing Outfitters. (941-705-3160). 
7 At St. Petersburg, Spanish mackerel are all over the place. They’re “thick” in the shipping channel from Marker 5 out to the Whistler Buoy. There’s little tunny mixed in. Mackerel are on the St. Pete Reef, along the beach and in the bay. The flounder bite has picked up on the flats, especially around Fort DeSoto. Mangrove snapper are still biting around most structure. Snook, redfish and trout action has been good around Big Bayou and Coquina Key, reports Larry Mastry at Mastry’s Tackle (727-896-8889).
8 In the north end of Tampa Bay, good numbers of Spanish mackerel have moved into the bay. The trout bite has picked up on the flats and just off the edges. Flounder are also biting around patches of sand. Schools of redfish are roaming the west shore from Weedon Island to the upper bay. Snapper numbers are starting to thin, but big fish are still biting in the deeper holes and channel edges. Cobia have been caught around the bridges and tripletail are on the markers. Snook are still biting around the bridge and mangrove flats during the day, reports Gandy Bait & Tackle (813-839-5551).
• At Homosassa, fishing for tripletail has been productive along the channel markers and crab trap buoys. A live shrimp under a cork drifted close to the structure will produce. If the fish are shy and holding deep, a shrimp on a jig head will should get the bite, reports Capt. William Toney of Homosassa Inshore Fishing Charters (352-621-9284).
• At Fort Pierce, offshore there’s been mangrove and mutton snapper, along with triggerfish on the bottom around 80-90 feet deep. Kingfish have been caught around the 50- to 80-foot mark. At the inlet, tarpon and snook are chasing mullet along the beach. There’s also big Spanish mackerel nearshore off the beach. Pompano are biting in the surf and also inside the river. Snook are biting in the inlet at night on jigs. Mangrove snapper, black drum and sheepshead have been caught around the bridges. Trout are biting around some of the docks and grassy patches in the river, reports Clint Walker at the Fishing Center of St. Lucie (772-465-7637).

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