SOUTH FLORIDA OFFSHORE: Capt. Tony DiGiulian reported some 20-pound dolphin were caught under frigate birds earlier this week. Kingfish 8-12 pounds were biting in 50-80 feet off Hallandale Beach. Groupers and amberjacks were biting on wrecks off Miami. Fishing for yellowtail snappers has been good at night. Capt. Willie Howard had small blackfin tunas, mutton snappers and kingfish just south of Lake Worth Inlet using jigs and sardines.
THE KEYS: “The night bite is on,” said Capt. Bill Hauck of the Sea King party boat of Marathon. Anglers were catching big mangrove snappers, with the bite turning on around 11 p.m. Dave Ragland caught a 53.2-pound black grouper, plus two other groupers between 18-30 pounds, on a recent trip. Yellowtail snappers were biting well off Islamorada. Fishing for schoolie dolphin was hit-and-miss.
SOUTH FLORIDA INSHORE: Tarpon were biting flies and plugs in the back country of Everglades National Park. Mangrove snappers were biting around the islands in Florida Bay.
EVERGLADES/FRESHWATER: Bass were biting plastic worms in the L-67A Canal and along Tamiami Trail. Capt. Alan Zaremba of Hollywood reported his anglers were catching peacock bass in urban canals using small jerkbaits and flies.
LAKE OKEECHOBEE: An algae bloom at the south end has shut down bass fishing, forcing anglers to fish the north end, where spinnerbaits and topwater lures were catching fish early in the morning.
