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Florida fishing: Mutton snapper biting; Snook season harvest ends June 1

ed killer, treasure coast newspapers
·5 min read

Two important things for anglers to know about this week:

  • Snook harvest season ends for anglers along Florida's Atlantic coast at midnight June 1.

  • NOAA Fisheries announced a two-day red snapper season for Atlantic anglers.

More details are below, but we have arrived upon Memorial Day weekend — the unofficial start of summer around the country. Here on the Treasure Coast, summer began about three months ago. The fishing patterns reflect the weather, sort of.

Snook are biting everywhere it seems. Dolphin, blackfin tuna and a few wahoo can be caught along the currents and eddies of the Gulf Stream. Tarpon and big jacks are roaming along the beaches. Kingfish are a little deeper, tripletail are on markers and black drum and croaker can be caught on the bridge pilings.

The weekend forecast looks fishy with a cold front blowing through. But don't expect it to get cold, it'll just bring the wind.

Mutton snapper was the catch of the day May 21, 2023 aboard the Safari I partyboat at Pirates Cove Resort and Marina in Port Salerno.
Mutton snapper was the catch of the day May 21, 2023 aboard the Safari I partyboat at Pirates Cove Resort and Marina in Port Salerno.

Florida fishing regulations and fishing season opening and closing dates:

  • Snook: Harvest closes June 1. Reopens Sept. 1. One fish bag limit, 28-32 inches, snook stamp required.

  • Red snapper: July 14-July 15. One fish per angler per day. No minimum or maximum size limits.

  • Lobster: Season closed April 1. Two-day sport season (mini-season) opens July 26-27. Regular season opens Aug. 6.

  • Grouper: Harvest opened May 1. Includes gag grouper, red grouper, black grouper, scamp, yellowfin grouper, yellowmouth, coney, graysby, red hind and rock hind. Harvest closes Jan. 1, 2024.

  • Hogfish: Harvest opened May 1. Harvest closes from Nov. 1, 2023, to April 30, 2024.

  • Cobia: New bag and size limits for state waters. Bag limit: Two fish per vessel. Size limit: 36 inches fork length.

  • Spotted seatrout:  Harvest opened Jan. 1 in Volusia, Brevard, Indian River, St. Lucie, Martin and Palm Beach counties. Harvest closes November and December 2023.

  • Redfish: Harvest of redfish is banned in the Indian River Lagoon and Mosquito Lagoon beginning Sept. 1. FWC will re-evaluate later in the year.

  • Alligator: Hunt season opens Aug. 15-Nov. 1. Permits required.

  • Dolphin: Bag limit is five fish per day per angler. Vessel limit is 30 fish per day. Captain and crew may not be included in limit. These fishing regulations began May 1, 2022, for state waters.

  • Tilefish: Harvest opened Jan. 1.

  • Bass: Bass at Headwaters Lake will soon become all catch-and-release.

For complete fishing regulations in Florida go to MyFWC.com.

Red snapper season

NOAA Fisheries announced this week there will be a two-day long recreational red snapper fishing season in Atlamtic waters. From 12:01 a.m. July 14 to 12:01 a.m . July 16, anglers may keep one red snapper per day per person. For more on the ruling, go to NOAA Fisheries and search "red snapper Atlantic."

TCBA is a go... for now

The 37th annual Treasure Coast Builders Association Memorial Day Fishing Tournament is scheduled for Saturday. However, weather may cause tournament directors to postpone the event. Go to the captain's meeting to find out what directors will do. Final chance to register is Friday from 4-6 p.m. The mandatory captain's meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. at Pirates Cove Resort & Marina, 4307 S.E. Bayview Terr., Stuart. Entry is $400 per vessel for offshore and inshore divisions. Eligible species of fish are kingfish, dolphin, wahoo, snapper (except cubera) and grouper in the offshore division and snook, trout, redfish (release) and tarpon (release) lengths for the inshore division. Payouts are through third place per species in offshore division and through third place overall for inshore. To learn more go to fishtcba.com.

This large overslot snook was caught & released May 24, 2023 in the Indian River Lagoon near Indian River Drive with land-based charter guide Jayson Arman of That's R Man.
This large overslot snook was caught & released May 24, 2023 in the Indian River Lagoon near Indian River Drive with land-based charter guide Jayson Arman of That's R Man.

Indian River County

Offshore: Capt. Terry Wildey of Big Easy charters out of Capt Hiram's Resort in Sebastian has been steering customers to catches of mangrove snapper, triggerfish, kingfish, mutton snapper and occasional cobia. Tarpon have been moving around in schools just off the beaches outside the inlet.

Inshore: Spotted seatrout, snook, tarpon and jacks can be caught between the mangrove shorelines and the spoil islands on both sides of the lagoon. Use topwater plugs or suspending lures to get bites in 2-4 feet of water.

Freshwater: Rising water temperature is slowing the action in the western lakes. Expect bass to be a little more difficult to get a bite out of. Bluegill and shellcracker will bite a little better. Use live crickets.

St. Lucie County

Offshore: Good mangrove snapper fishing can be enjoyed on the reefs at Bethel Shoal and the Offshore Bar. The depth for the most action is 70-90 feet of water with dead sardines or cut bait. There was decent grouper fishing beyond 190 feet of water.

Inshore: Snook continue to be the top catch in the Indian River Lagoon. Wade fishing the end of the docks along Indian River Dr. with topwater plugs has been productive for customers fishing with Jayson Arman of That's R Man land-based fishing charters. Trout, tarpon and jacks can bite, too.

Surf: Grass has been hit and miss. If heading to the beach, watch the lightning. On days or beaches with little or no seaweed, croaker, whiting and pompano can be caught. On other days, the grass is simply too much.

Martin County

Offshore: Dolphin and blackfin tuna are two targets bluewater anglers are picking up by using run-and-gun techniques, scouting for floating objects like sargassum seaweed, pallets or sea junk. Mutton snapper have been on the reefs in 50-70 feet of water and will take dead sardines on long leaders.

Inshore: Snook fishing is dominating this region. Live bait has been the key for successful anglers, but lures and flies are working in the right places. Try fishing the bridge pilings of the Ernie Lyons Bridge for sheepshead, drum and croaker.

Lake Okeechobee

Three things important to know here: First, the lake is at about 13 feet 8 inches. Ok, but could be better meaning it could be lower. Second, the algae bloom is being tracked by satellite imagery it's so big. Can you still fish despite the algae? Yes. Should you eat the fish? That's your call. I say probably not. Bass will hit spinnerbaits, 10-inch worms and stick worms. Bluegill and shellcracker will take live crickets. DOH Martin County issued an algae alert for Port Mayaca advising not to come in contact with the water, so there's that.

Ed Killer is an outdoors columnist for TCPalm.com. Email him your fishing report at ed.killer@tcpalm.com.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Florida fishing this weekend includes snapper, last chance for snook