Red Drum
Sciaenops ocellatus, commonly know as the redfish or channel bass, the redfish is second only to the the black drum in size among the members of the drum family. The redfish is coppery red in appearance on the back and white on the lower sides and belly, and has a spot or spots on the tail called eyespots. Redfish live in the estuary as immature fish until become mature at about 30 inches at which time they move off shore and can grow to over sixty pounds.

Redfish fishing has fast become a great fishing sport as the redfish has gained popularity among anglers. The redfish is a hard fighter and will test anyone's light tackle angling skills. Live shrimp, greenbacks, and pinfish are top choices for redfish. With a variety of spoons, jigs and topwater baits taking good numbers of redfish. Most of the fish caught inshore are juvenile's as the mature fish tend to live in nearshore to offshore waters. Redfish will school in potholes of deeper water and can also be found foraging on the bottom with their tails sticking out of the water on the flats. Redfish can be found throughout our area year-round and from about July through October can be found in large schooling numbers. During these months redfish fishing is at its hottest, with a fifty redfish day not uncommon.

These fish will typically school up in groups of fish that number from about 5 to over 300, where the later can produce non stop fishing action. With freshwater bass like quality redfishing is gaining in angler participation. The hard fighting drag pulling action of the redfish will thrill any angler. Fort Myers, Matlacha, and Pine Island are my personal go to spots for a redfish charter. Cape Coral, Englewood Captiva and Sanibel all off perfect access to the backcountry flats where the redfish live.