Now that the record-breaking freeze of 2010 is over with there are other questions for anglers to ponder. It’s nearly April, time for an influx of migratory bait and gamefish to move up the coast.

Yet the middle of March is still experiencing chilly weather and water temperatures are just beginning to creep up. Many gamefish that would not bite due to the lower metabolism that the cold water caused just began to feed around March 10.

We’ve yet to see a real sheepshead season and trout fishing is still far slower than normal. Redfish finally are making an on again, off again, showing. We needn’t mention snook.

The season is closed on the few that survived the killer freeze. But the migratory fish have yet to make an appearance and low water temperatures may seriously alter that seasonal pattern.

Nothing is more mysterious or helpful to the angler than understanding the migrations of animals. These are often global events that we just don’t understand. There are some minor things that influence the behavior of gamefish; though they might seem inconsequential. There are many species of birds, notably blue-winged teal that migrate based solely on the length of day as measured by the small duck’s pineal gland. Some teal are noted early migrators and can be spotted bypassing Florida for South America while other ducks are still enjoying the cool September of Alaska.

Some fish do just about the same thing.

Most fish belong to different populations. King and Spanish mackerel have primary and accessory populations and that translates to home bodies, more often called “bank loafers,” that stay on offshore reefs year round. A different population of migratory fish moves from the Keys to the panhandle each spring and fall, passing the Gulf Coast during their travels.

When I was a kid we often caught 100 Spanish mackerel off Gulf Coast fishing piers all summer long. Those fish never left. But the bulk of the population came in the spring and fall when the migratory population supplanted the supply of resident fish. It’s still kind of that way. Mackerel are more common summer fare than they have been in many years. Even small kingfish have taken up residence in the estuaries when the weather is warm.

Big kings are also becoming more common. Records for kingfish were once set on the Gulf Coast but the fish almost vanished. Now 40 to 60-pounders are showing up again and setting records in king mackerel tournaments. Some of them are residents that live in the Tampa Bay Shipping Channel all year.

What tarpon and permit do is far more mysterious. Last year, and it’s happened before during cool springs, migrating tarpon moved north though the estuary system. Those shallow waters warm up much faster than the open Gulf. So cool springs often see tarpon show up in the backwaters before they appear in the passes or along the Gulf beaches.This often throws tarpon fishing off and may result in a very late silver king season in places like Egmont Key, Boca Grande Pass and the beaches. During this record winter anything short of a sudden heat wave will probably cause the same type of behavior.When that happens the best early tarpon fishing may be far up Charlotte Harbor and at the Sunshine Skyway Bridge in Tampa Bay. Beach and pass anglers may have to wait on silver kings this season.

There have been some seasons when the peak of fishing at Boca Grande Pass occurred not in May or June but as late as August when most anglers had given up on them.Kingfish and Spanish mackerel fishing will probably be impacted by the record freeze of 2010 as well. March is historically a windy month and the cold fronts keep marching across the Gulf. On the 11th of this month gale force winds and tornado watches accompanied a massive cold front that swept across the Gulf. This one didn’t bring killer cold with it. But it dropped the temperature once again and the ensuing rain event that came with it further added to dropping water temperatures.

Pelagic gamefish like king and Spanish mackerel don’t like wind that blows onshore. It tends to break up bait schools and makes the water dirty; and that complicates predation by these sight-hunting gamefish. Windy springs usually see these pelagic fish stay far offshore where the water temperatures are warmer and the depth allows for clearer water to hunt in. The spring migration is usually farther offshore than the autumn event anyway. When that spring is accompanied by windy weather it may well mean kingfish will completely bypass the Gulf Coast in favor of the lee shores of the panhandle. Spanish mackerel may dash inside Tampa Bay instead. But all those fish have to migrate sometime. By knowing what problems they face in that movement you can plan most fishing trips accordingly.

By G. B. Knowles

Hey thanks for reading our post! Weather versus the Need to Migrate. The Fishing Florida Report.

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I know, I know. It seems rather odd that Trout fishing may be the benefit from this freeze. January saw the worst freeze in perhaps a century. Lots of snook died. It’s all been rather dreary and the winter continues. But there is some good news out there. With the freeze came a purging of algae and old dead grass from the flats. The cold cleared up the water as it always does when such frigid weather and overcast days prevent algal growth.

There was a lot of loss to mangrove trees. Many of these valuable marine building blocks saw freeze damage that destroyed the leaves, and fallen mangrove leaves make up the first link in the marine food chain.

They grow bacteria (organisms also inhibited by the cold) which in turn is fed upon by microscopic plankton that provides food for juvenile baitfish. The denuding of mangroves also means a curtailment in structure for mature gamefish to hide amongst.

Blue crabs migrated upriver to escape the chill. Stone crabs hunkered down in muddy burrows on the grass flats. Meanwhile, many species of marine grass, notably turtle grass (Thalassia species), do not grow in the winter; particularly not during frigid ones.

This all sounds like gloom and doom but it does have a silver lining. Migratory whitebait could be found between the bouts of cold weather. But this bait source moved offshore or migrated south when the majority of the cold occurred. That’s one less food source for the estuary.

There are still tube and blood worms that stayed safe and warm beneath the mud of the grass flats. Snapping shrimp took refuge under old logs or manmade structure like tires or concrete blocks. Barnacles, clams, oysters and mussels endured as did the small oyster crabs that live inside such shellfish.

Shrimp buried in the sand, the way they always have. They sustained the cold weather. Meanwhile, despite all the snook kills reported there was virtually no mortality among spotted sea trout.

These popular gamefish range much further north and can withstand temperatures that snook can not. They continue to flourish, particularly after a harvest closure in November and December. They might as well have also been off the catch list in January due to the chilly weather. Few anglers ventured onto the water last month.
That means great trout fishing could be the panacea that winter weary anglers need when the weather begins to warm.There are still plenty of trout out there and they have precious few places left to hide; a paucity of foods to eat. That amounts to some really great trout fishing when the weather does let up.

Crevalle jacks, snook, pompano and even trash species like snake, or lizardfish, died during the freeze and that means few gamefish left to compete with trout for the meager food supplies left this winter. Baits will be easier for trout to see with the clear water and the lack of grass. Meanwhile, the grocery list remains below par. That should equate to hungry trout when the days warm enough to perk up appetites. Trout become targeted on non-migratory food sources in the winter anyway. Hence, it won’t be unnatural for them to eat a lure that resembles a marine worm, shrimp or small crab.

Best baits will be a live shrimp fished below a popping cork or free-lined. With the lack of grass you may not need that cork but trout will still be found around structure. It may not be lush turtle grass beds but look for shell bars or hard bottoms where turtle grass doesn’t grow anyway. If you fish this kind of structure, in shallow water, that cork might come in handy to keep the shrimp off the bottom and away from the trash fish that did survive the freeze.

Live shrimp will probably outshine lures until the water really warms up. Best rig to use is a 2/0 long-shanked hook. This is important because the long hook shank makes unhooking trout easier and results in more successful releases. The best leader for trout is a 15-20-pound test piece of fluorocarbon about 18 inches long. You might find the fish to be leader shy in the clear water and need to scale down accordingly. Unless there is a lot of tide a weight shouldn’t be needed. If you have to add one make it a small quarter-ounce rubber core sinker or split shot. You probably won’t need that except when fishing near the passes.

If you insist on using lures than the watchword is slow down. Winter lures simply can’t be fished too slowly. Jerkbaits, jigs and the smaller DOA lures all work well when fished very slowly. Next to a live shrimp these will be the baits of choice.

All indications point to spectacular late winter trout fishing. Now if only the weatherman will cooperate and provide a few days of sunny skies and seventy-degree temperatures. When that’s the case forget all about the freeze. It’s in the past now and there is good fishing yet to come.

So what do you think? What are you catching now? Let us know.

By Guest Writer: GB Knowles

Hey thanks for reading our post! Trout Fishing May Benefit From Freeze

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Hey thanks for reading our post! Trout Fishing May Benefit From Freeze

• Grady White Boats
• Yamaha Outboard Motors
• Scout Boats
• SouthWind Deck Boats
• Used Boats For Sale
• Full Service Marina & Ship's Store
• Fishing Bait & Tackle
• Boat Repairs

• Boat Rentals for Anna Marina, Bradenton, Longboat Key, Sarasota , Siesta Key
• Boat & Yacht Brokerage
• Grady White & Scout Boat Service
• Full Service marina
• 5 Star Yamaha Service Certified Center
• Yamaha Re-Powering Specialists