Pompano have arrived; Flounder closed as seatrout and hogfish seasons near closures
Wow, the weather man actually got one right for a change. The predicted cold front was cold and with it came light northerly winds.
This type of weather moves the fish. Expect migratory species to be showing up along the Treasure Coast in full force this week.
Pompano and whiting catches are increasing along the beaches from Sebastian to Hobe Sound. Use Fishbites to dial in on the action. Permit and jacks will be in the mix as well. Cast to the sand bar during the rising tides. Bluefish, Spanish mackerel, dolphin, tuna and sailfish are also coming back south with this weather.
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Closures & regulations changes in effect: Anglers are reminded about these fishery harvest closures currently underway and ones about to begin and end.
Flounder: Harvest closed from Oct. 15 through Nov. 30. Harvest re-opens Dec. 1.
Hogfish: Harvest closed from Oct. 31 to April 30, 2023. Harvest re-opens May 1, 2023.
Spotted seatrout: Harvest closed from Nov. 1 through Dec. 31 in Volusia, Brevard, Indian River, St. Lucie, Martin & Palm Beach counties. Harvest re-opens Jan. 1, 2023.
Snook: Harvest closed from Dec. 15 through Jan. 31, 2023. Harvest re-opens Feb. 1, 2023.
Grouper: Harvest closed from Jan. 1, 2023 through April 30, 2023. Harvest re-opens May 1, 2023. Includes gag grouper, red grouper, scamp and six other lesser species.
Redfish: Harvest of redfish is banned in the Indian River Lagoon and Mosquito Lagoon beginning Sept. 1.
Alligator: Hunt season open Aug. 15-Nov. 1. Permits required.
Lobster: Regular season opened Aug. 6.
Dolphin: New fishing regulations began May 1 for state waters. Bag limit is now 5 fish per day per angler; Vessel limit is now 30 fish per day. Captain & crew may not be included in limit.
Tilefish: A commercial fishing closure is in place beginning July 6 until Dec. 31, 2022.
Bass: Bass at Headwaters Lake will soon become all catch and release.
For complete fishing regulations in Florida go to MyFWC.com.
Indian River County
Offshore: Kingfish have been in the 20-40 foot zone around schools of sardines. On the reefs, when current allows, the mutton snapper and mangrove snapper are biting in 70-90 feet of water.
Inshore: Congratulations to Vero Beach anglers Jack Diehl and Andy Steinbergs who caught to grand slams in the Indian River Lagoon south of the 17th Street Bridge. Using artificial lures they duo each caught tarpon, redfish, snook and trout fishing the falling tide along mangrove shorelines in 2-3 feet of water.
Freshwater: Commissioner Deryl Loar told us the bass bite at Headwaters Lake has been pretty good on wild shiners. Anglers can expect the fishing to get even hotter with the cooler temperatures. This should energize the bass.
St. Lucie County
Offshore: Mutton snapper and mangrove snapper are still biting steadily on the reefs like Bethel Shoal and the Offshore Bar. Dolphin can be caught out on the rip. The fish should be heading south along the western edge of the Gulf Stream.
Inshore: Grouper can be caught along the channel edges north of North Causeway trolling lipped plugs. Snook can be caught along the inlet under docks. Tarpon and Goliath grouper are being caught at the entrance to Big Mud Creek.
Surf: The Sperco family of Port St. Lucie scored decent fishing the past few days fishing from various beaches on Hutchinson Island ranging from Blue Heron, to Middle Cove to Dollman and Glascock. Look for greener, clean water on the incoming tide and fish the sand bar with Fishbites to catch pompano, permit, whiting, jacks and blue runners. Randy Sperco and Gary Faircloth both had nice permit this week from the surf.
Martin County
Offshore: Sailfish are starting to show in 120-150 feet of water northeast of the inlet. Troll ballyhoo to get bites. Dolphin and blackfin tuna are in the same zone. The northerly winds should bring more fish into the area. Mutton snapper, red grouper and mangrove snapper can be caught along the ledges in 70 feet of water southeast of the inlet.
Inshore: Snook and tarpon are still dominating the catch report in this zone. For snook, cast docks, seawalls and shorelines around Rocky Point, Sewall's Point, Snug Harbor and Lighthouse Point. Tarpon are being caught in the inlet and around the Crossroads.
Lake Okeechobee
The level of Lake Okeechobee has been rising steadily since Hurricane Ian dumped 13-16 inches of rain in the Upper Kissimmee Chain of Lakes. Thursday, it was at 15.36 feet above sea level. What this means for anglers is that bass are able to get into hard to reach shallows to feed in areas where they haven't foraged since last year. Look for action in 2-3 feet of water on topwater frogs, Chug Bugs and other surface lures.
Ed Killer is TCPalm's outdoors writer. Sign up for his and other weekly newsletters at profile.tcpalm.com/newsletters/manage. Friend Ed on Facebook at Ed Killer, follow him on Twitter @tcpalmekiller or email him at ed.killer@tcpalm.com.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Pompano in the surf; Flounder off limits, trout & hogfish closing soon
