Why am i catching ladyfish instead of snook

Redfish and sharks feed largely by sense of smell so ladyfish is a great choice. The birds like our old buddy Fisher and his cousins were squawking again swooping into the water to.

Noah with the first large one.

Why am i catching ladyfish instead of snook. Frozen ladyfish seems to attract more catfish and fewer gamefish. Once youve got your chunks rig them up on a circle hook I used these 50 Gamakatsu Octopus Circle Hooks through the belly. Hooking them through the belly and cutting off any pelvic fins will make them more aero and hydrodynamic so theyll cast farther and wont tumble around in the water and get all tangled up.

Ladyfish are very frequently found around bridges and piers at night. These are the same areas where HUGE snook can be lurking. Drop one of these guys down and HOLD ON.

Ladys are another one of those baits that you cant be afraid of. A giant snook can easily garbage a 20 ladyfish. However tiny ones and big ones are all great baits for BIG snook.

They catch or at least hook a few big tarpon every year on the piers on the king rigs. I fish as south in NC as you can get and have never seen a snook or bonefish. Plenty of ladyfish though sometimes you can catch them on every cast.

If you arent catching snook in an area but are catching trout reds and tarpon you can use 10-15 pound leader. Snook will be laying on the bottom of these muddy creeks and thats where your baits need to be. Reel slowly and if thats not producing slow down your retrieve even more.

Bass anglers work baits like Senko lures. Ladyfish are so numerous I rarely worry about conserving them when theyre going to be used as chunks. Live ladies are another matter entirely since you never have enough of them on a hot bite.

Ive put livies back out that were barely able to move and gotten results with them of course if you have a choice a live kicker is always what you want. If its too cold in the water the fish will be sluggish and less enthusiastic about chasing your lures. The reverse happens too.

When its a really hot day above water its a hot day in the water too. Instead of becoming parboiled fish will seek out cooler water in the shade or in the depths. The best live baits for catching snook fish are grunts sardines shrimps and mullet.

In my case I always use live shrimps when I catch snooks as I know how to bait shrimp and I can attest that they are very effective with snooks. You can try to buy any of these before you catch a snook. Pound for pound a sailcat pulls much harder than any trout.

A ladyfish puts on a show that has rightfully earned the nickname of Poor Mans Tarpon. A jack crevalle will out pull a snook any day of the week and a bonita has a run that will make you think you hooked a smoker king. If the water was already warm when it rains Snook tend to become more active because of the change in temperature and pressure.

The increase in oxygen levels will also make Snook hungrier. Thats why rainy conditions are often ideal for catching Snook. However if the water was cold when it rains it might not be ideal for Snook fishing.

Anglers using live bait instead of artificials are getting their live shrimp at the pier where casting shrimp under the pier on a weighted rig is yielding sheepshead black drum flounder and some catch-and-release redfish. Using larger live baits pinfish or small ladyfish. And by the Snook I mean a lot of Snook who suddenly seemed to be back in larger numbers.

The familiar sound of splashing ladyfish chasing bait out further in the dark had returned. The birds like our old buddy Fisher and his cousins were squawking again swooping into the water to. And it is a recurrent theme I have heard from lots of old-timers in other places.

I am convinced that snook this size scavenge a lot of what they eat. I know one thing. Every time I catch a ladyfish I will be putting out a piece of cut bait whenver we stop to fish for snook.

Be sure to visit Sportsmans Guide for a fine assortment of fishing gear. Most of which are occurring while we are targeting catch-and-release snook. The snapper are 10-14 inches with most right in the middle.

As for the snook early morning fishing is yielding good numbers but as the day wears on and the heat intensifies. Though Snook are a semi-common fish from the southern tip of North Carolina all the way to Brazil your best bet for catching them in the US. Is the Florida Gulf Coast and Texas from Corpus Christy to the Mexico border.

You may find them anywhere along their range but they are by. Yes both cut ladyfish and live ladyfish are excellent bait for predatory fish such as snook tarpon sharks and redfish. Is ladyfish fun to catch.

Ladyfish are a lot of fun to catch especially for kids and beginner anglers. They are usually easy to find and often they are in large numbers for non-stop action. Is a skipjack a ladyfish.

When that water is moving the snook are more apt to eat. If you are forced to fish on a very weak tide or very little water movement you might be better off fishing around some bridge structure whether it be morning day or night. Good luck and if you catch a snook please send us a photo of your catch.

Thank you for sending in your question. Noah with the first large one. If you look at the tail on a ladyfish its not dissimilar from that of some of the fastest running saltwater species like bonefish and milkfish.

Its not surprising that they fight as hard as they do. It is a little surprising that people dont enjoy catching them more. Near the new moon I like a big outgoing tide.

Early in the morning and near the full moon I prefer to fish a big outgoing tide near dark. Look for snook to feed when the water temps are in the lower to mid 60s and above. The best bait in our region is live finger mullet and smaller ladyfish.

Concentrating my efforts on fly fishing for reds and snook by targeting shorelines and mangroves on the rising and falling tides with a collection of flies including speed bugs clousers seaducers and crab shrimp patterns. The best way to catch ladyfish is with a silver spoon or my favorite a got cha Cut the ladyfish in about 1 or 2 chunks. Redfish and sharks feed largely by sense of smell so ladyfish is a great choice.

Snook eat ladyfish and mullet chunks but really prefer the larger pinfish. Specifically snook fishing with ladyfish. When using j-hooks my hook up rates were ok but when I switched to circles in that situation the hook up rate was nearly 100.

To be clear this was a very specific situation from a bridge or pier above the fish and generally speaking fishing directly below. Giant trout on cut ballyhoo cut mullet the secrets out. Now were gonna see every trophy trout hunters wading around slinging dead baits instead of corkys.

One of the biggest trout Ive seen was caught on cut ladyfish while bullred. Snook are fun but theres another fish I really like catching - the ladyfish. Ladyfish are great fun on a fly rod.

They run hard and jump a lot. Some people call them baby Tarpon. The only downside to catching them is that they tear up flies and leaders with their teeth.

Sea trout are fun too. Snook are among the most popular fish species in Florida. From Jupiter down to the Florida Keys then northwards to Naples and further up towards Destin these fish capture the attention of both novice anglers and experienced fishermen.

While Snook are quite common catching a big one aka Slob Snook is not an easy feat. Today were going. So after August catching them should slow down since they are carrying the eggs for the next two months.

Both species of catfish tend to go after smaller baits. So increase the size of your bait and it should help decrease the amount of catfish. Just a few of these things should help.