Naples Fishing Report: Redfish.
Naples Fishing Report, Sunday, March 4, 2018, Florida Fishing Report – Naples: Redfish, On The Oyster Bars! Latest Algal Bloom & Water Quality / Lake Okeechobee Update and Red Tide Report. We’re mostly focused on Naples fishing the channels, grass flats, passes, oyster bars, mangroves and near shore fishing in Naples, but we also give updates on Naples deep sea fishing.
We’re big advocates of catch and release, particularly for snook, but pretty much for most species. Only take what you are going to eat, and a lot of fish are better off as sport fish, even if they are in season. Our motto is let ‘em get bigger and catch ‘em again!
Please see our Sanibel, Captiva, Fort Myers, Seashell & Shelling and Cuban Fishing sites for charter photos from our other captains, additional fishing and shelling reports, and musings on fishing in Cuba one of these days!
Please try our pilot Sanibel & Captiva News site or Sanibel & Captiva Events Calendar to see what else is happening Sanibel & Captiva islands!
We’re just getting started in Naples, but we’re looking forward to reporting on Naples fishing!
Naples Fishing Report, Friday, March 2, 2018, Florida Fishing Report – Naples: Redfish, catch & release! If you are a local Naples fishing guide/captain and would like to submit photos and reports, please let us know. Daily Naples fishing reports. All are welcome. You can reach us @ FloridaFishingCharterReport@gmail.com.
Image Credit: © Diane Rome Peebles
“Red Drum: Sciaenops ocellatus
Florida Regulations: (Harvest in federal waters prohibited)
| Regulations | Northeast Zone | Northwest Zone | South Zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Size Limit | Not less than 18″ no more than 27″ total length | ||
| Daily Bag Limit | 2 fish per person per day; 8 fish vessel limit | 1 per person per day; 8 fish vessel limit | 1 fish per person per day; 8 fish vessel limit |
| Remarks | Bag limits apply in areas adjacent to fishing sites such as docks and parking lots
6 fish per person transport limit applies when traveling in a vehicle on land away from a fishing site. Must remain in whole condition until landed ashore Commercial harvest prohibited |
||
Gear requirements:
- Legal Gear: hook and line, cast nets
- Illegal Gear: Spearing (includes spearfishing, gigging and bowfishing) and/or use of multiple hooks in conjunction with live or dead natural bait is prohibited
Red Drum Management Zones
- Northwest: Escambia through Fred Howard Park Causeway near Pasco County
- South: Fred Howard Park Causeway through Monroe County (west coast) and Miami-Dade through Volusia counties (east coast)
- Northeast: Flagler through Nassau counties
Habitat and Fishing Tips:
Red drum, also called redfish, channel bass, spottail, red bass or reds, are one of Florida’s most popular sport fish and the state’s most widespread estuarine fish. Red drum are named after the “drumming” sound the make during spawning and when taken out of the water. The sound is produced by muscles rubbing against the inflated air bladder.
Red drum inhabit the nearshore and offshore waters throughout the Gulf of Mexico and along the Atlantic coast from Massachusetts to Key West. Juvenile red drum inhabit rivers, bays, canals, tidal creeks, and passes in estuaries for up to four years, after which they usually move to nearshore or open ocean waters as adults.
Red drum in Florida can reach lengths of 45 inches and weigh up to 51 pounds. The world record red drum was caught off North Carolina waters in 1984 and it weighed 94 pounds, 2 ounces.The oldest recorded red drum in Florida was aged at 40 years.
Floating a live shrimp under a popping cork is a good way to fish for red drum. They also chase crabs, mullet, pinfish and killifish (mud minnows). Casting soft-bodied jigs, spoons and even top-water plugs will catch the attention of these powerful estuarine musicians. Redfish make great table fare.
State Record: 52 lb 5 oz, caught near Cocoa (1996)
Florida Rules Also visit: Redfish Catch, Hold and Release Tournament Exemption Permit page
Red Drum Management
Management of red drum in Florida is considered a success story. In the late 1980s red drum was overfished, thus several emergency closures were established to reduce fishing pressure. In 1989, the slot limit of 18-27 inches, the bag limit of one fish per person and a closed season from March-May were put in place.
Red drum stocks have rebounded and are currently meeting or exceeding the FWC’s management goal of 40% escapement in most parts of Florida. Escapement is the proportion of fish that survive through age four relative to the fish that would have survived if there was no fishery.” Source & more information here.
The Naples-Marco Island area has terrific beaches and beach fishing! The beaches stretch along the Gulf of Mexico for about 10 miles and include Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park, Clam Pass Beach Park, Naples Municipal Beach & Fishing Pier (Naples Pier), Vanderbilt Beach, North Gulfshore Boulevard Beach, and Lowdermilk Beach Park. Naples beaches are often ranked in the top 5-10 beaches in America!
There are also a number of both small and very large reserves in and nearby Naples-Marco Island. They include Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, Everglades National Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge, Ten Thousand Islands National Wildlife Refuge, and Picayune Strand State Forest.
Like much of southwest Florida, Naples has barrier islands which mean great fishing! The breadth of the natural ecosystem near Naples is immense and can’t be fully described in this short post. Marco Island is the most well-known, but Marco Island spills south into the Ten Thousand Islands and unbelievably good fishing!
Other islands include Keywaydin Island, which is the longest unbridged island in southwest Florida and has a lot of natural habitats, and Kice Island and Cape Romano, which are very remote!
We’re just getting started in Naples, but we’re looking forward to reporting on Naples fishing!
If you are a local fishing guide/captain and would like to submit photos and reports, please let us know. All are welcome. You can reach us @ FloridaFishingCharterReport@gmail.com.