The water in the backcountry has warmed into the mid 70’s and consequently, sharks and tarpon have shown up and other species are getting more active.
73-75 degrees seems to be the temperature that inspires sharks and tarpon to frequent the backcountry. They show up in the same parts of the same bays every year and this year is no exception. My anglers have caught 12 sharks this year all within the last month. Lemons are the most common right now although we did catch a bull shark two days ago. One of the lemons had to be 150# and we caught it in 4’ of water! When the lemons are in that’s mostly what we catch, when black tips are around, same thing. Once in a while a nurse shark and bulls are common when they’re here.
Snook fishing has improved and I’m just starting to catch some bigger ones. They just don’t like the cool weather that we have in winter and this time of year they slowly become more active as the weather and water warms.
Been catching some nice redfish also but not a lot. Most are decent size fish in the mid and upper 20” range. They like high tides as they prefer to forage along the mangrove shorelines searching for food.
Jacks (jack crevalle) seem to be everywhere. Jacks are great fun especially when you get into the eight pounders and bigger. Jacks are a large family if fish with 150 species worldwide. See the description of jacks below.
Going forward we’re coming off the full moon with a quarter moon a few days ago so the tides will get better over the next few day with nice incoming tides in the mornings and falling tides in the afternoon. The next new moon is on April 1 and the next full moon is on April 16 which again will bring strong tides.
I still have openings in April so give me a call, 239-450-9230.
Capt. Mark
More About Jack Fish
Jack Fish, any of numerous species of fishes belonging to the family Carangidae (order Perciformes). The name jack is also applied collectively to the family. Representatives can be found in temperate and tropical portions of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans and occasionally in fresh or brackish water. Although body size and shape vary greatly among jacks, many of the more than 150 species are characterized by laterally compressed bodies, a row of enlarged scales (scutes) along the side near the tailfin, small scales resulting in a smooth appearance, and a deeply forked tail. Many have a bluish green, silvery, or yellowish sheen on the body. Jacks are important commercially and are favoured sports fishes.
Some of the most popular marine game fishes are the amberjacks (genus Seriola), which are found worldwide. The greater amberjack (S. dumerili) of the tropical Atlantic is one of the largest members of the jack family, often attaining lengths of 1.8 m (6 feet). The genus Caranx includes several species of smaller but popular game fish, such as the crevalle jack (C. hippos) of warm Atlantic waters and the yellow jack (C. bartholomaei), which frequents warm Atlantic waters and is noted for its golden-yellow sides and fins.
Are you ready to plan your Naples fishing trip?
Experience the backcountry saltwater mangrove estuaries of Naples, Marco Island, the 10,000 Islands and Everglades National Park. Light tackle sport fishing for snook, redfish, tarpon, trout, pompano, bonita, sharks and other saltwater species. Contact Capt. Mark to plan your Naples fishing charter, call: (239) 450-9230
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