White perch provide plenty of fun action

ANNAPOLIS — Anglers in the middle Bay continue to enjoy good shallow water fishing in the Eastern Bay area, around Poplar Island, the mouth of the Choptank, the Little Choptank, and near the mouth of the Severn and South rivers. The best action is occurring in the early morning and late evening for anglers casting a collection of topwater lures, spinnerbaits, paddletails and jerkbaits. These efforts are catching striped bass and puppy drum.

Those trolling along the channel edge from Buoy 83 south to Sharps Island Light are catching Spanish mackerel and a few bluefish. Small spoons are catching the mackerel and the bluefish are being caught by trolling surgical tube lures; both are being pulled behind planers. There is also some action reported down by the CP Buoy. Spanish mackerel have been scarce in the middle bay region and the recent slug of freshwater most likely did not help. Water temperatures have dropped a couple of degrees and salinity values did also. Hopefully more Spanish mackerel will move into the middle bay region this week.

White perch are providing plenty of fun action this week in a variety of locations and anglers report the large size of the white perch is very welcoming. White perch along with some spot are holding on the western side of the Bay Bridge in about 15 feet of water. Most anglers are targeting the white perch with peeler crab and spot with pieces of bloodworm.

During the early morning and late evening, the shores of the Bay and tidal rivers provide excellent fishing for large white perch. Casting small spinnerbaits, Roadrunner type spinner jigs and small jigs is a fun way to fish for them. Anglers are also catching small red drum in the 12-inch to 14-inch size range. Casting out a bobber rigged with a small minnow, or a grass shrimp is another way to enjoy the action. Fishing off docks with a simple one hook bottom rig baited with grass shrimp or peeler crab is another excellent way to fish. Fishing over oyster reefs in the tidal rivers works well, and Kent Narrows will always be a great place to fish for white perch.

Lower Bay

A mix of Spanish mackerel and bluefish is a major focus of anglers in the lower Bay this week, at least those who like to troll or cast into breaking fish. Reports are that the bluefish outnumber the Spanish mackerel but there seems to be enough to go around to satisfy anglers. The Spanish mackerel are being caught on small Drone and Clark spoons and the bluefish on surgical tube lures, both are being pulled behind planers. The mouth of the Potomac, the east side of the shipping channel below Hoopers Island, and Tangier Sound are good places to troll. Anglers are reporting catching a few cobia on the surgical tube lures so it pays to have a varied trolling spread.

The lower Potomac River, the lower Patuxent River, the Hoopers Island area and Tangier Sound are all wonderful areas to cast a variety of topwater lures or paddletails for a mix of striped bass, speckled trout, and puppy drum this week. At times the puppy drum are the most common fish being caught and many of them are falling within the 18-inch to 27-inch slot size. Drifting soft crab baits is another great way to fish for puppy drum on an outgoing tide from the many tidal creeks emptying the Eastern Shore marshes in the Tangier Sound area. Live-lining spot is also a great way to catch large speckled trout.

Freshwater Fishing

Fishing for largemouth bass remains good this week throughout Maryland from Deep Creek Lake to the Eastern Shore. Wherever you’re fishing, the largemouth bass activity model will be about the same. The bass are feeding in relatively shallow waters near grass during the night so late evening and early morning are great times to target those areas with frogs, buzzbaits and soft plastics. When fishing these grass beds in tidal waters Chesapeake Channa (northern snakeheads) will often be part of the mix with explosive surface strikes.

As the day wears on, the largemouth bass will seek cool shade wherever they can find it. Floating docks and moored pontoon boats at Deep Creek Lake, old docks, fallen treetops and floating grass mats all fit the bill. When fishing these spots, it is hard to beat a wacky rigged worm flipped or dropped in front of a lounging bass that will urge them to pick up an easy meal.

DNR crews last month stocked 25,000 largemouth bass fingerlings 1-3 inches in length in the tributaries of the tidal Potomac last month. They also stocked 6,500 largemouth bass fingerlings of the same size in Marshyhope Creek. Both were done by boat to help spread them out in suitable habitat.

Ocean and Coastal Bays

Along the beaches of Assateague Island, surf anglers fishing small baits are catching a mix of kingfish, spot, and a few croaker and blowfish. The kingfish tend to like bloodworms or the artificial alternative but will take small strips of spot. The croaker will take strips of spot or squid as will the blowfish. Anglers using larger baits of finger mullet or cut mullet with cork float rigs are catching bluefish.

Inside the Ocean City Inlet casting soft plastic jigs during the early morning and late evenings is a great way to target bluefish and striped bass. The jetty rocks of the South Jetty, the Route 50 Bridge piers and piers and pilings are all good places to cast and work those jigs. During an outgoing tide, drifting cut bait is a good way to catch bluefish. Live lining spot is another good option when fishing in the inlet for striped bass, bluefish and large flounder and maybe a large sea trout. Sheepshead are also in play and can be caught near the South Jetty rocks or bulkheads and bridge piers on sand fleas or peeler crab.

As a reminder to all Maryland anglers, please participate in the Department of Natural Resources’ Volunteer Angler Surveys by reporting your catch of any number of species. This allows citizen scientists to contribute valuable data to the monitoring and management of several important fish species.

Maryland Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources .