The first hint that a spectacular fall of fishing is in our near future was evident at the Sunshine Skyway Fishing Piers this past week as many larger pelagic species made their presence known. Morning on the North Fishing Pier early in the week was nothing short of a spectacular sight, as tarpon were balling up infantile sardines and blasting into the air as they fed. Bonito made their presence known amongst the same baitfish school, and even a few king mackerel got into the action. Spanish mackerel were fantastic for anglers fishing early and late in the day, and were joined by plenty of jack crevalle and blue runners in their foraging. Mangrove snapper remained on a consistent bottom bite, and were joined by numbers of grunts, porgies and gag grouper. Finally, sharks of many species seemed fired-up by the incredible baitfish & predator interaction as they scavenged for scraps or wounded prey.
Schools of bonito were working baitfish schools along the shipping channel, and occasionally came close enough to both fishing piers for anglers to hook up with these strong speedsters. The term ‘bonito’ is used rather loosely, not only in the greater fishing community, but also by your fishing report author. Bonito are members of the Tuna Family of Fishes, and are often either confused with and/or also called little tunny, false albacore or skipjack tuna. In reality, all three are distinct species, but are very closely related in both taxonomy & appearance. When it comes to distinction, the identification often comes down to the location of stripes, the number of rays in a fin or even the jaw structure of the fish. I will use the term ‘bonito’ collectively and perhaps disappoint some of those anglers especially interested fishery biology.
Bonito schools working the Skyway Piers can be approached by several angling methods. These schools travel very fast, so casting artificial lures like spoons, jigs and Gotcha lures can be very effective for these nomadic fish. Choose lure weights a bit heavier than usual and a large capacity spinning reel because you want extreme casting distance if schools are lingering away from the piers. You cannot work a lure too fast for bonito, they will both overcome & strike whatever you can throw at them. On the other hand, bonito are also especially susceptible to chumming & chunking, and this method often allows anglers to keep fish around for an extended period of time. Clip chunks of sardines or herring with a bait scissor and throw in several handfuls. Try to mimic the same speed and motion of the chunk baits with your hooked bait and tie your shoes on tight!
Spanish mackerel activity was great this past week, and these fish were even joined by a few of their larger brethren in attacking the massive baitfish schools surrounding the Skyway Piers. Indeed, some anglers free-lining scaled sardines or threadfin herring were greeted by skyrocketing & drag screaming king mackerel that emptied some spools of unsuspecting visitors. Although it is a bit early for a strong fall kingfish run, there are almost always some early-arriving fish each season. There are reports of many fish hooked and a few kings landed on each side. Tossing silver spoons, white jigs and Gotcha lures was the best way to hook-up quickly this past week. Early and late in the day seemed to be the best times to take a quick limit of Spanish Mackerel. Anglers seeking kings should free-line large sardines or herring on single hook with a short length of wire leader. The earliest kings seem to be more susceptible to this light tackle method, as opposed to a trolley-line system & quick-strike rig, which seems more effective later in the season.
Look for a strong tarpon bite over the next month of fishing at the Skyway Piers. Indeed, often the early fall triggers a mood of reckless abandon in the silver kings as they crash young-of-the-year schools of small sardines & herring. If throwing artificial lures, attempt to scale down the size to mimic the baitfish the tarpon are engulfing. This can mean throwing smaller plugs and buck tail jigs than would normally be chosen for tarpon. If tarpon are seen crashing baits, simply landing a cast near the pod of fish often triggers a strike. When tarpon are less active, you can free-line live baits like sardines, herring, pinfish, blue runners or ladyfish. The half hour on each side of the tide change can sometimes be the best time for free-lining a bait towards an area where tarpon have been spotted.
- The Skyway, Paul Bristow - August 24, 2018
- The Skyway, Paul Bristow - August 17, 2018
- The Skyway, Paul Bristow - August 10, 2018
