skip mackey

grassFish Facts

The Salt water and Fresh water fishing is excellent all year round in Florida


Salt Water Action
Sailfish
Sailfishing -- All Year (Prime season is Nov.-Apr.)
Wahoo
Wahoo -- November - February (and summer trolling)

KingfishKingfish -- all year

Note* Skip was also a commercial Kingfisherman
He now spends his time going after other species and is a devotee of "catch and release".
He has learned to tie his own flies and is experiencing new frontiers in fishing recently catching his first Peacock Bass in the south Florida Canals. His dream is to go to Patagonia.

DolphinDolphin -- all year
TunaTuna -- all year
MarlinMarlin -- Winter and Spring
Fresh Water Action


large mouth bassThe FLORIDA LARGEMOUTH BASS is the best known and most popular freshwater game fish in Florida. Found statewide, largemouth bass have excellent growth rates, particularly in the productive waters of central Florida.

Spring is the best time of year to catch bass, when fish move into shallow water to spawn.
Bluegill
PANFISH

A variety of panfish, or bream as they are popularly known, is available throughout Florida. Bluegill, the most common panfish, thrives in lakes and ponds, but good populations are found in rivers, particularly below dams. Bluegill spawn throughout the summer

Common Names - bream, blue bream, sun perch, blue sunfish, copperhead, copperbelly, roach.

Other panfish include:
  • The redear sunfish, or shellcracker;  (March and April)
  • Redbreast sunfish, also known as river bream and redbellies;
  • The spotted sunfish, or stumpknocker and
  • The Black crappie, a cool weather favorite is known locally as speckled perch or specks

STRIPED BASS, WHITE BASS AND SUNSHINE BASS
Striped Bass
Common Names - striper, rockfish, rock, linesides.

All Florida populations of striped bass are river dwellers rather than anadromous (normally living in salt or brackish waters, but entering freshwater streams to spawn). The species has been widely introduced in numerous lakes, rivers and impoundments throughout the world. Stripers prefer relatively clear water with a good supply of open-water baitfish. Their preferred water temperature range is 65 to 70 degrees.

Spawning Habits - Spawns in March, April and May when water temperatures reach 60 to 68 degrees.

CATFISH

catfishCommon Names - spotted cat, blue channel cat, river catfish

Channel catfish are abundant throughout Florida, spawning in holes and crevices in flowing water. Channel catfish may exceed 40 pounds, although the typical size is less than five pounds.

White catfish, yellow bullheads and brown bullheads usually range from one to two pounds, and readily spawn in lakes and ponds where they also provide good fishing.Spawning occurs mostly in rivers and streams in the spring and early summer when waters warm to 70 to 85 degrees

peacock bass
BUTTERFLY PEACOCK BASS

Butterfly peacocks are caught only during daylight hours, as they do not feed at night.

Read more about this species on my favorites page

For More information on Florida Fishing Visit:
My FWC - Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

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