Mosquito Lagoon and Indian River:

Now that springtime is in full swing, the fishing is getting really good in the Mosquito Lagoon and Indian River.   The water levels are down and the water is clear, which is great for sight fishing.

The black drum bite in all our lagoons systems continues to be "on fire" and the redfish are still schooled up and eager to eat.   

In the Mosquito Lagoon the fishing guides are reporting huge schools of black drum (some estimated at over 1,000 fish) tailing on the shallow grass flats in the early morning hours or schooling up in the deeper holes when the wind picks up.

In the Indian River from Titusville to Melbourne, the best bite is reported to be around the Max Brewer Bridge and the Jensen Beach Causeway.   Some big black drum are being caught tight to just abouit any structure;  particularly the oyster bars and bridge pilings in the river.

In the Banana River near Cocoa Beach and Merritt Island, the bite has been consistent for smaller "puppy drum" in the 5 to 15 pound catergory. The slot size fish are scattered mostly around the dock pilings and bridge fenders.   Large schools have been moving through the deeper channels in these areas. 

With the April 1st full moon approaching, we can expect one last major push of big females moving into the shallows to spawn in all of these areas.

For big black drum, a fresh quartered blue crab is by far the preferred bait of choice.   For slot-sized drum, most anglers prefer using live or frozen shrimp, or sand fleas.

April is a prime month to catch gator sea trout in East Central Florida, especially on topwater baits.

As the flats heat up, the seatrout will be feeding heavily before their spawning season which runs from May through late summer.   During this same time period throughout our lagoon system, baitfish like pigfish, pinfish, croakers, mullet and mojarra start moving back into the seagrass beds to spawn.  This convergence makes for some great topwater fishing.

Sea trout are low light hunters that feed best early in the morning and at sunset, which is the best time to cast topwater plugs like the Chug Bug, Badonk-A-Donk, Skitter Walk, Zara Spook, or anything resembling a baitfish to catch them.  

As the water warms up, usually around 9:00 am, the topwater bite will die down and the fish will move into the deeper water along the drop offs adjacent to the flats.    This is when plastic swim baits like Creme's Spoiler Shad, D.O.A. Cal Shad Tails, and saltwater Shad Assassin baits can be used to get down to the fish.  Large baits over 6" will catch larger trophy size trout but 3″ to 5″ paddle tail baits will generally entice more bites, especially when some Pro-Cure Gel is smeared on the bait. 

The Northern section of the Mosquito Lagoon near New Smyrna Beach is currently the hotest spot for "Gator" trout over 25 inches in our area.   Target the sandy potholes and light-colored spots in the middle of the grass flats where the larger trout often sit motionless waiting to ambush baitfish. 

In the Indian River from Titusville down to Melbourne, you can find big  trout along the deeper grass edges around any kind of structure in 3 to 5 feet of water.   As the sun warms the water throughout the day, the fish move into "skinny" water (less than 2 feet) to sun themselves.

The "No-Motor-Zone" in the Banana River is also holding solid numbers of larger fish in extremely shallow water where they are often mixed in with the schools of redfish and black drum.

During the winter months sea trout primarily feed on shrimp.  Although the trout will still eat shrimp, the larger gator size trout are currently transitioning to a fish heavy diet.  Natural colored 5 inch jerkshads, live pinfish or pigfish, and topwater baits work best for the bigger "sows.

Redfish schools in the lagoon system are transitioning from their massive winter congregations into smaller, more active spring groups.

The Northern and central sections of the Mosquito Lagoon from George's Bar up to around J.D.s Fish Camp remains a top spot for schools of 10 to 50 fish, with occasional pods of 200 fish or more still holding in the deeper sloughs and potholes during the cooler morning hours.  Look for them in the shallow grass flats between New Smyrna Beach and the Kennedy Space Center 

Schools of 10 to 50 fish are the norm right now, with occasional larger pods of 200+ still holding in deeper sloughs and "potholes" during cooler mornings.   Look for them in the shallow grass flats between New Smyrna Beach and the Kennedy Space Center throughout the day.

In the Indian River from Titusville to Melbourne the redfish have already dispersed and can be found around the oyster bars and the shallow grass flats.    Fish in this area are often intermingled with large sea trout and sometimes black drum.

In the Banana River around Cocoa Beach, the bite for smaller slot size and "rat reds" is steady around the edges of the mangroves and docks.  Undersize fish are abundant in this area right now and are being caught mainly on live shrimp.

As the water warms you can find the fish aggressively tailing in the grass as they search for shrimp and crabs.   On calm mornings you can often see the V shaped wakes the cruising reds make as they travel from one area to another.

Gold spoons, 3 inch DOA shrimp, and topwater plugs are staples that will catch reds just about anywhere.  For skinny water, unweighted or light 1/8th oz. jigheads, or small Creme paddletail baits work best.  

Fly fishermen using tan or olive colored shrimp and crab patterns in size 2 to 6 have been catching some nice tailing reds in skinny water throughout the lagoon system.

The key right now is to be stealthy when sight fishing for redfish.  The water in the lagoon system is quite clear in most areas.

Although most of the fish in the lagoon system are in the 24 to 27 inch range, Bull Redfish over 40 inches are beginning to show up more frequently in the shallows as we head into April, especially in the northernmost section of the Indian River across from the Scotsmoor boat launch.

Although the snook in the northern backwaters of the Mosquito Lagoon took a pretty good hit during this past February freeze, they are still being caught around the sandy potholes on the flats as they sun themselves.

On sunny afternoons, look for snook in extremely shallow (1–2 feet) water over dark, muddy bottoms or in the sandy pot holes.   The fish are there to soak up the heat and will often hit a well presented fly or unweighted soft plastic bait.

In the Indian River, the snook bite is very consistent around the bridge and dock pilings, especially at night.  The snook have been staging in these areas as the move towards the inlets and are aggressively hitting live baits, jigs, and lipped diving plugs.

Live shrimp is currently the most reliable "go to" bait for dock or bridge fishing but DOA Shrimp, Vudu Shrimp, and white bucktail jigs have also been catching good numbers of snook.  On calm mornings when the water temperatures hit the 70 degree mark, you can get explosive strikes on topwater plugs like the Skitter Walk and Zara Spook.  

The night bite in most areas has been outperforming the day bite, especially around the fenders and shadow lines of the SR-520 and A. Max Brewer bridges.  A fresh jumbo live shrimp tipped on a jig head is a hard bait to beat for black drum, snook, redfish, and larger sea trout in any of these areas..