“Tuna fishing the Gulf of Mexico at night doesn’t get any better than this…” Two hours of “chunking” for tuna proved fruitless that evening on the Midnight Lump, as the sun relentlessly glared down on us. What added to the aggravation were the long sunburned faces that wondered if fresh tuna would ever line their … Read more
The Southern Smooth Puffer is found Northeast Florida and northern Gulf of Mexico, the Bahamas and Mexico and Lesser Antilles. They are found in bays, estuaries and protected coastal waters. Southern Smooth Puffers are solitary and they feed primarily on shellfish but wont turn down fish if they can manage to catch one. Like other … Read more
Grand Isle, Louisiana, is the Cajun Bahamas Just two hours southwest of New Orleans at the southern most point of La. State Highway 1, lies a whole other world that lives up to its name, GRAND Isle. Grand Isle, from earliest days of exploration along Louisiana’s coast, has indeed figured strikingly with regard to state … Read more
Striped mojarra (Eugerres plumieri) range in the Western Atlantic from South Carolina through the Gulf of Mexico all the way to Brazil but are absent from Bahamas and West Indies. Striped mojarra liv in shallow coastal waters and occasionally travel quite a distance into freshwater. Striped mojarra feed on aquatic insects, crustaceans, clams and even … Read more
Great northern tilefish – Lopholatilus chamaeleonticeps: Occur from Nova Scotia to southern Florida and the Gulf of Mexico and possible the northern coast of South America. Usually tilefish are found in fairly deep waters around 500 ft or more, usually over mud or sand bottom and occasionally over rough bottom. They feed mainly on shrimp … Read more
The Leapard Toadfish has the general appearance of the oyster toadfish with a large head, large mouth but the skin has a more spotted pattern. Toadfish feed primarily on smaller fish and small crustaceans. Maximum weight is about three pounds. They range throughout the Gulf of Mexico and the Western Central Atlantic Ocean.
Red Snapper (Lutjanus campechanus) reach a maximum size of ~50 pounds. Red Snapper, as the name implies, have a somewhat reddish color. A more descriptive adjective would probably be rose colored. The young have a large dark spot just below the back part of the dorsal fin. Red Snapper range from Massachusetts down to Florida … Read more
Speckled Trout (Cynoscion nebulosus) also know as speck is a very important gamefish in the Gulf of Mexico as well as the Atlantic Ocean. Speckled Trout are easy to identify. They have elogated bodies with spots. The spots are more prominent when young and are more numerous on the back. Specks have two very easy … Read more
This is a juvenile Mangrove Snapper. Mangrove Snapper (Lutjanus griseus) also known as gray snapper, is an important fish both commercially and recreationally. Mangrove snapper reach sizes up to 17 pounds max., frequently up to 12 pounds and more commonly caught at 2 pounds. Mangrove Snapper range from as far North as Massachusetts, South to … Read more
Tripletail (Lobotes surinamensis) reach a maximum size of 40 pounds although the average size is much smaller. Tripletail, as the name implies, have a body that appears to have three tails. This is actually just the anal and dorsal fins. Tripletail are common in the Gulf of Mexico but are a species that gets little … Read more