Fishing report, April 19: Bait arrives for hungry tarpon, snook

April 19, 2015

Fishing report: What the Bill Jackson’s staff is seeing on the water and hearing about:

With the arrival of bait balls, the fishing action in the Tampa Bay region is really turning on. Two primary targets of anglers are active and hungry: Tarpon are feeding and snook are out on the beaches. In addition, seatrout can still be found around the Gandy.

Bait for tarpon and snook

A good bait for tarpon and snook is the threadfin. They are found around bridge pilings and channel markers, and when they are schooling near the surface, you will see birds diving on their position.

Threadfin can be caught in good quantities with a cast net or jigged up with a Sabiki rig and put in your live well. If you want to learn to throw a cast net, come into the store and ask for Alex in the fishing department. She is eager to teach folks who are getting started in her favorite sport.

If you are trolling threadfin for tarpon, hook them through the nose. If you are using smaller threadfin to cast for snook, do not hook them through the nose. After a few casts, the hook will tear through. Instead, feed the hook through one eye and out the other. The hook does not pass through their brain, but it does blind them so they swim in an erratic fashion that attracts predatory fish.