Southern District Fishing Report —
Pender, New Hanover and Brunswick Counties
Contact: Dennis Trowell (Dennis.Trowell@ncdenr.gov)
For the week of June 3-9
Ocean: Offshore, the Gulfstream fishing is pretty much done until the fall. Dolphin are still being caught, along with good numbers of billfish. Bottom fishing has been fantastic so far this spring with good catches of scamp, red and gag groupers coming in the 40- to 50-mile range, along with limits of vermilion snapper and a wide assortment of other reef fish. Near shore, the king mackerel fishing remains red hot with lots of school size fish in the 3- to 15-mile range. Near shore, the flounder fishing has been getting better the last couple of weeks. Good numbers of tarpon were reported off the tip of Bald Head Island last week.
Inlets/Sounds/Bays: Good numbers of flounder have finally started to show up. The lower Cape Fear River around Southport has been the hot spot for flounder. Black and red drum, along with some spotted seatrout were caught throughout the area’s bays, creeks and rivers. Good catches of sheepshead were caught around area jetties, docks and bridges. Some tarpon and tripletail showed up in the lower Cape Fear River behind Battery Island.
Piers/Shore: Low numbers of spot, croaker and sea mullet were caught on the bottom. Anglers fishing live bait for flounder and drum did well over the last couple of weeks. There were several tarpon hooked and landed off the ends of the area piers. Surf fishermen reeled in sea mullet, bluefish and some slot sized red and black drum.
For the fishing year, all owners/operators of vessels recreationally fishing for and/or retaining regulated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (Atlantic tunas, sharks, swordfish and billfish) in the Atlantic Ocean, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, must obtain an Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Angling permit. This permit has replaced the Atlantic tunas Angling category permit. In North Carolina, additional Highly Migratory Species harvest reporting requirements are also in place. To obtain a permit go to: http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/hms/compliance/permits_reporting/index.html
Report a tagged fish
Please note: Anglers sometimes confuse small king mackerel with Spanish mackerel. King mackerel and Spanish mackerel have different size and catch limits. Make sure you properly identify the mackerel you are catching. (Tips here)
A recreational fishing license went into effect Jan. 1, 2007 for all of the state's coastal and ocean waters.
Click here for the latest seasons, size and bag limits.
Please note: New reports are usually posted by early Monday afternoon.
