Florida fishing: Tarpon season is underway; Snook are strictly catch & release

Snook harvest has ended for the spring portion of 2023 along Florida's Atlantic coast. Now the popular fishing is strictly catch and release until Sept. 1. That's when the fall portion of the harvest season opens.

Anglers can shift gears to spend more time chasing after dolphin, snapper and tarpon. Dolphin have been showing up along the current edges. Mangrove snapper and mutton snapper have been on the reefs in 40-90 feet depths. Tarpon have been along the beaches and near all three inlets.

Kingfish, blackfin tuna, greater amberjacks and grouper are giving bluewater anglers plenty of reasons to hit the water.

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Florida fishing regulations and fishing season opening and closing dates:

• Snook: Harvest closed 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 there will be a two-day long recreational red snapper fishing season in Atlantic 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."

Indian River County

Offshore: There has been some excellent fishing on the reefs in 70-90 feet of water. Mangrove snapper and lane snapper, triggerfish, kingfish and occasional cobia will take dead sardines. Kingfish, bonito and spinner sharks are taking live baits drifted in 40-60 feet of water.

Inshore: Snook season closed to harvest June 1. Oversized redfish can be caught during the outgoing tide by anglers drifting with live small blue crabs in Sebastian Inlet. Jacks and tarpon have been cruising the inlet, too, and will take live baits. Trout are being caught on the Moorings flat and around the spoil islands.

Freshwater: Try fishing the canal banks with bow and arrow for tilapia. They'll be on beds along the edges. Bluegill can be caught using liv crickets and red wiggler worms.

St. Lucie County

Offshore: Amberjacks up to 80 pounds and gag grouper up to 30 pounds are in 180 feet of water and deeper taking large live baits, butterfly jigs and cut pinfish or croaker. Drifting live baits has been productive for summer sailfish, kingfish, cobia, sharks and bonito.

Inshore: Catch and release snook fishing still dominates the catch report. Fish have been around structure near the inlet like the Turning Basin, both bridges, along the docks of the inlet and around the jetty. Tarpon have been in the inlet and the channel back to the port.

Surf: There's too much sargassum in the surf and on the beaches to fish effectively. Anyone casting a line from a beach will get grassed up immediately. It'll be some time before this clears.

Martin County

Offshore: Trolling for dolphin has been excellent in 160 to 300 feet of water working along sargassum seaweed mats and current edges. Use ballyhoo with colorful sea witches. Green and gold or blue and white or blue and pink work well. Put a bait down 40 feet in the water column as you troll to get bites from tuna and wahoo.

Inshore: Now that snook season has ended, it's strictly catch and release for these apex predators. There are still plenty being caught around the bridges on jigs and live bait. Tarpon are outside the inlet along the beaches and traveling in schools looking for schools of pilchards and sardines.

Lake Okeechobee

The level of the lake has gone up a little with the recent rainy weather. It was at 13 feet 9 inches as of Tuesday meaning the water is a little deeper in everyone's favorite fishing spots. Plus, microcystis algae is throughout the southeastern portions of the lake. If anyone wants to fish in the Monkey Box, around Horse Island or King's Bar, there are probably bass biting there on swim baits, worms and jigs.

Ed Killer is the fishing writer for TCPalm. Email him your fishing report at ed.killer@tcpalm.com.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Florida fishing this weekend: Tarpon, dolphin, snapper are biting