Fish Facts

Snook

Want a terrific fight? Hook a snook! A fish of the American Tropics that can’t survive if the water termperature falls much below 60 degrees.

Snook have been classified as a gamefish since 1957. They are caught year round but are out of season December 15^th - January 31^st., June, July and August.

Snook fight hard using fast runs combined with quick changes of direction and jumps. Casting artificial lures, still fishing with live bait or fly fishing with files that imitate small bait fish or crustaceans are all good methods to catch Snook. The average Snook is 3 lbs., with some fish to 8 lbs. fairly common.

Tarpon

What little is known about the tarpon proves that this prehistoric animal is one of the most diversified and interesting creatures in the world. The tarpon is the only fish with an air bladder which allows it to absorb oxygen and live in waters with almost no oxygen content.

Tarpon are also called tarpum, sabalo real, cuffum, silverfish or silverking and belong to the bony fish family Elopidae. The Latin designation is Magelops atlanticus. These extraordinary fish can be found on both sides of the Atlantic, having been seen as far north as Nova Scotia and as far south as Natal, Brazil.

Across the Atlantic tarpon can be found from Senegal to the Congo. Spawning takes place offshore as far as 125 miles and the young make their way to shallow estuarine coastal waters.

Females lay up to 15 million eggs. While only microscopic at birth, tarpon have been documented at over 8 feet in length and 350 pounds. The average tarpon at Boca Grande weights about 75 to 85 pounds, with numerous fish well over 100 pounds. Catches of fish over 200 pounds have occurred at Boca Grande. A fish over 100 pounds is generally a female, and the rate of growth is very slow, taking 8 to 10 years to reach sexual maturity. Tarpon can live to 55 or 60 years.

Redfish

Redfish did not obtain gamefish status until 1988 but thanks to a one fish "slot limit" of no larger than 27 inches their numbers are steadily increasing. In fact sometimes it’s hard to catch a fish small enough to keep.

Fishing methods include: live bait near the mangroves, casting jigs and spoons in potholes on the flats or fly fishing to tailing fish, are all fun ways to catch redfish.

Available year round with an average weight of 4-5 lbs. And lots of fish in the 8-12 lbs. range, especially in late summer and fall when schools of 200 fish or more can be found on the deeper flats.