If you love to fish, one thing that you’ll find is that there are a lot of fish that Florida has to offer. Whether you are looking for a trophy or you want some delicious fish to have for dinner, you can find it in Florida. Below are the top 10 fish species that you can find in Florida.
These are highly prized because they are good fighters but they’re not valued for their food value. Tarpon is one of Florida’s most popular fish. They can tolerate a lot of different salinities so they’re found throughout all of Florida’s waters.
This is the official saltwater fish of Florida and it inhabits subtropical and tropical waters. They usually travel in small groups and alone. They’re easy to recognize by their high, long dorsal fin. They’re known for acrobatic high jumps and they’re a favorite of anglers.
These are usually found in estuaries and bays and have two big canine teeth in their upper jaw. Mainly feeding on small baitfish and shrimp, it’s one of the very popular sportfish in Florida and will hit everything from saltwater flies to a topwater plug.
Snook are very sensitive to water temperature changes and are found in the warmer waters of Florida. A voracious, strong predator, they’re known for shredding fishing lines. They’re great sport on your light tackle and they’re cagey prey. However, they’re so worth it!
These fish are also called “redfish”, and they’re a schooling fish found in brackish and salt water. You can tell it’s the red drum and not a black drum because it has a longer body than the black drum and there aren’t any chin barbels. The fish can also have one or more big black spots near its tail. It used to be overfished, but it’s now a conservation success stories.
This is the official Florida freshwater fish and it’s known internationally. Florida’s one of the top destinations when it comes to fishing for black bass, and anglers come from around the world seeking the 10-pound bass. Big bass will eat almost anything, including baby ducks and squirrels. They live in rivers and lakers.
This is the general term for describing a lot of different species like redear sunfish, warmouth, spotted sunfish, and bluegill. These are the types of fish that a lot of the young anglers go for. They can be caught using spinner balls, popping bugs, and worms.
Grouper is the generic name for a variety of deep-water species. They’re bottom dwellers and they’re important both to the commercial and recreational fisherman. Gag grouper, also known as black grouper and red grouper, are the ones that anglers like the most. Usually, anglers will bottom fish when it comes to these species. However, when it’s cooler, anglers catch them in the shallow water by trolling with artificial lures.
These offshore fish usually found in water from 60 – 440 feet. Red snapper, as the name suggests, has a color of pinkish to a red color. It also has an anal fin that’s pointed to help distinguish it from other types of snapper. The young red snapper used to die in huge numbers during shrimp trawls. However, new regulations are helping them bounce back. They’re one of the best fish for food in Florida.
This fish family includes Spanish mackerel and king mackerel. Kingfish is one of the top predators in the ocean in Florida and it’s a target of many tournament fishermen.
When you come to Florida, bring your fishing gear. There’s a lot of great fishing here and whether you are fishing for fun or sport, there’s a fish in the ocean for you.