Inshore — Flats, Backcountry, Bridges

Nearshore — Reef Line, Wrecks, ~5–30 mi

Offshore — Deep Reef, Blue Water, Stream

Inshore

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  Tarpon — Spring through summer is prime as fish migrate the beaches and Keys bridges; sight-cast crabs, mullet or large swimbaits, and fly the flats.GearSoft-plastic swimbaits5/0-7/0 circle hooks80 lb fluorocarbon leader

  How to ID

  • Large silvery platelike scales ("silver king")
  • Upturned, bony lower jaw projects well past the upper
  • Single soft dorsal with a long trailing last ray (filament)
  • Large upward-facing eyes; no barbels
  • Deeply forked tail, deep compressed body

  Tell it apart: The huge chrome scales plus the upturned bony lower jaw and the threadlike trailing dorsal ray are unmistakable; nothing else in range looks like a giant silver herring.

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  Permit — Best in spring and again midsummer when fish tail on the flats and stack the wrecks; sight-cast crab flies or live-crab imitations.GearCrab flies1/0-2/0 short-shank hooks20 lb fluorocarbon leader

  How to ID

  • Deep, strongly compressed silver disc-shaped body
  • Orange-yellow wash on the lower body and anal-fin area
  • Dark sickle-shaped (falcate) dorsal and anal-fin lobes
  • Forked tail with dark lobes; no spots or stripes
  • Small mouth, blunt steep forehead

  Tell it apart: Compared with a pompano (not on this list), a permit is larger and far deeper-bodied with a darker, more sickle-shaped second dorsal; the flat silver disc with an orange-tinged lower body and no markings is the giveaway.

• 
  Bonefish — Year-round but peaks in spring and early fall; wade or pole the flats and sight-cast small shrimp flies or lightly weighted jigs.GearShrimp-pattern flies1/8 oz bonefish jigs12 lb fluorocarbon leader

  How to ID

  • Slender, torpedo-shaped silver body, greenish back
  • Conical snout overhanging an inferior (underslung) mouth
  • Faint dusky bars or sheen on the upper sides
  • Single short dorsal, deeply forked tail
  • Large scales; no spots, no barbels

  Tell it apart: The blunt overhanging snout with the mouth set well underneath, on a bright-silver streamlined body, separates it from any small jack or ladyfish.

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  Snook — May through August is peak around spawning passes and bridges; work topwater and flair-hawk jigs at night, soft plastics in the backcountry.GearFlair-hawk bucktail jigsWalking topwater plugs40 lb fluorocarbon leader

  How to ID

  • Bold black lateral line running onto the tail
  • Sloping forehead with a protruding, scoop-shaped lower jaw
  • Yellowish fins (often bright yellow pelvic/anal fins)
  • Two separate dorsal fins, distinctly divided profile
  • Silvery-green back fading to a white belly

  Tell it apart: The single sharp black stripe down the lateral line plus the jutting lower jaw is diagnostic; no other inshore fish here carries that crisp black line onto the tail.

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  Redfish — Best in the fall as fish school in the backcountry; sight-cast gold spoons and weedless soft plastics, slowing the retrieve in cooler months.GearGold weedless spoonsPaddletails + jigheads30 lb fluorocarbon leader

  How to ID

  • Copper-bronze to reddish body, white belly
  • One (sometimes more) black spot at the base of the tail
  • Sloped snout, inferior (downward-facing) mouth
  • No barbels; large rough scales
  • Slightly emarginate (nearly square) coppery tail

  Tell it apart: The black spot(s) right at the tail base on a bronze, down-turned-mouth body is unique; muttons also show a dark side spot but it sits high on the mid-body (not the tail base), and muttons are deep-bodied snappers with canine teeth and a pointed anal fin.

  Easily confused with: Mutton Snapper

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  Sheepshead — Best in the cool winter months around bridge pilings and docks; drop fiddler crabs or shrimp on a small hook with a knocker rig.Gear1/0 sheepshead hooksKnocker rigsSensitive jigging rod

  How to ID

  • 5-7 bold black vertical bars on a silvery-gray body ("convict fish")
  • Human-like incisor teeth at the front of the mouth
  • Steep blunt forehead, small terminal mouth
  • Sharp, stout spines on the dorsal and anal fins
  • Slightly forked dusky tail

  Tell it apart: The combination of bold black body bars and protruding human-style front incisors is unmistakable; no other barred fish here has those teeth.

• 
  Mangrove Snapper — Peaks in summer when fish school to spawn on patch reefs and bridges; freeline shrimp or small baits on light fluoro.Gear1/0 live-bait hooksKnocker rigs20 lb fluorocarbon leader

  How to ID

  • Gray to reddish-brown body, often a coppery sheen
  • Dark band through the eye, more obvious when feeding/excited
  • Two enlarged canine teeth in the upper jaw
  • Reddish-orange tinge to the fins; no spot on the body
  • Single continuous dorsal, slightly forked tail

  Tell it apart: Gray (mangrove) snapper lacks the mutton's blue facial lines and high side spot and lacks the yellowtail's bright yellow lateral stripe and yellow tail; look for the dark eye-bar and a plain gray body with no markings.

  Easily confused with: Mutton Snapper, Yellowtail Snapper

Nearshore

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  Sailfish — Peaks in winter when cold fronts push fish along the reef edge; slow-troll live baits or kite-fish goggle-eyes off Miami and the Keys.GearKite-fishing kit6/0-7/0 circle hooksOffshore live-bait combo

  How to ID

  • Enormous sail-like first dorsal, much taller than the body is deep
  • Long, thin, round (spear-like) upper-jaw bill
  • Cobalt back, silver sides with rows of pale blue bars/spots
  • Long, thin pelvic-fin filaments under the body
  • Hard tail keels and a forked tail

  Tell it apart: The huge sail dorsal (taller than the body is deep) instantly separates a sailfish from blue marlin, whose pointed dorsal is lower than the body depth, and from swordfish, which has a single high but non-sail dorsal and no pelvic fins.

  Easily confused with: Blue Marlin, Swordfish

• 
  King Mackerel — Best in spring as schools move through; slow-troll ribbonfish or live baits on wire stinger rigs near reefs and wrecks.GearWire stinger rigsDrone spoonsSingle-strand wire leader

  How to ID

  • Iron-gray to greenish back, plain silver sides (adults unspotted)
  • Lateral line drops sharply downward below the second dorsal
  • First dorsal lacks a black front lobe (uniformly grayish)
  • Streamlined body, deeply forked tail, no barbel
  • Numerous sharp triangular teeth

  Tell it apart: The lateral line taking a sharp dip under the second dorsal is the king-mackerel signature; the clear (non-black-fronted) first dorsal separates small kings ("snakes") from juvenile Spanish mackerel, and the absence of vertical bars and a blade-like snout separates them from wahoo.

  Easily confused with: Wahoo

• 
  Cobia — Spring is prime as fish migrate near beaches and buoys; sight-cast bucktail jigs or eels to cruising and surfacing fish.GearHeavy bucktail jigsSoft-plastic eelsMedium-heavy casting rod

  How to ID

  • Long, broad, flat-headed dark-brown body (shark/remora-like)
  • Distinct dark lateral stripe bordered by paler bands
  • Row of short, stout, isolated spines forming a low first dorsal
  • White belly; broad, slightly forked tail (rounded in young)
  • No barbel; large pectoral fins often held flat and stiff

  Tell it apart: Cobia's flattened broad head and remora-like profile, dark side stripe, and row of short separate dorsal spines separate it from the higher-bodied, single-finned amberjack.

  Easily confused with: Amberjack

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  Amberjack — Available year-round on deep wrecks and reefs; drop live baits or speed-jig vertical jigs straight down to hard-pulling schools.GearVertical speed jigs8/0 circle hooksHeavy jigging combo

  How to ID

  • Dark diagonal bar through the eye to the first dorsal ("bandit mask")
  • Amber to brassy lateral stripe running along the flank
  • Bronze-amber sides, long stout body
  • Long-based second dorsal and anal fin
  • Deeply forked tail; no barbel

  Tell it apart: The dark diagonal eye-bar (nuchal bar) running up to the first dorsal, plus the amber flank stripe, identifies greater amberjack; cobia is flatter-headed with a dark side stripe and a row of separate dorsal spines.

  Easily confused with: Cobia

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  Mutton Snapper — Peaks in late spring and early summer around spawning aggregations; fish whole baits on a long-leader knocker rig on deep reefs.Gear5/0 circle hooksKnocker rigs50 lb fluorocarbon leader

  How to ID

  • Olive-to-reddish body, often brick-red on the lower sides
  • Small black spot high on the side below the rear dorsal
  • Blue iridescent lines/streaks below and behind the eye
  • Pointed (V-shaped) anal fin; strong canine teeth
  • Red eye; reddish tail margins

  Tell it apart: The single black spot high on the side plus blue lines under the eye and a pointed anal fin separate mutton from gray snapper; unlike redfish the spot is mid-body (not on the tail base), and unlike red grouper it has a forked tail and canine teeth.

  Easily confused with: Mangrove Snapper, Redfish, Red Grouper

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  Yellowtail Snapper — Best through the summer; anchor up-current on the reef, set a chum slick and drift small baits back on light fluoro.Gear1/0 yellowtail hooksChum block20 lb fluorocarbon leader

  How to ID

  • Bright yellow midbody stripe widening into the tail
  • Bluish back with yellow spots above the stripe
  • Slender, streamlined body (less deep than other snappers)
  • Deeply forked, all-yellow tail
  • Pinkish-white belly, small mouth

  Tell it apart: The unbroken bright-yellow stripe running into a fully yellow deeply forked tail is unmistakable and separates it instantly from gray (mangrove) snapper.

  Easily confused with: Mangrove Snapper

Offshore

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  Mahi (Dolphin) — Peaks late spring through summer; troll ballyhoo and skirted lures along weedlines and color changes, then pitch baits to the school.GearSkirted trolling luresBallyhoo rigging kitOffshore trolling combo

  How to ID

  • Brilliant green-gold-blue body, flanks dotted with blue/black
  • Long single dorsal running nearly from head to tail
  • Bulls (males) develop a steep, blunt, near-vertical forehead
  • Body tapers sharply to a deeply forked tail
  • Colors fade to silver-yellow out of the water

  Tell it apart: The full-length single dorsal fin and electric green-gold color with blue speckling are unique; a high blunt forehead marks a bull versus the rounded head of a cow.

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  Wahoo — Best in late fall and winter; high-speed troll 12-18 kt with weighted Ilander or jet heads on wire leader near drop-offs.GearIlander-style trolling luresSingle-strand wire leaderOffshore trolling combo

  How to ID

  • Elongated steel-blue body with 25-30 vivid blue vertical bars
  • Long pointed snout with a beak-like, somewhat mobile jaw
  • Razor-sharp, blade-like teeth in a slender mouth
  • Long, low first dorsal; very streamlined body
  • Deeply forked tail; prominent single caudal keel each side

  Tell it apart: The vivid blue vertical bars and the elongated beak-like snout distinguish wahoo from the unbarred, blunter-snouted king mackerel, whose lateral line also dips sharply under the second dorsal.

  Easily confused with: King Mackerel

• 
  Blackfin Tuna — Steady year-round with a cooler-month edge; troll small feathers and skirts, or vertical-jig and chunk over humps and reef edges.GearSmall trolling feathersVertical jigsFluorocarbon leader

  How to ID

  • Stout football-shaped body, dark blue-black back
  • Finlets behind dorsal/anal are dusky with a pale edge (not bright yellow)
  • Short pectoral fins (do not reach past the second dorsal origin)
  • Silver sides, sometimes a faint yellow side band
  • Small mouth, deeply forked tail

  Tell it apart: Dusky (dark) finlets with at most a narrow pale margin separate blackfin from other tunas, which have bright-yellow finlets; blackfin also stays small and stocky.

• 
  Swordfish — Targeted year-round; daytime deep-drop squid baits 1500-1800 ft with weighted rigs, or drift baits at night near the surface.GearDeep-drop swordfish rigSquid baitsElectric reel combo

  How to ID

  • Long, wide, flattened (sword-like) bill — over a third of body length
  • No pelvic fins; adults are scaleless
  • Tall, rigid, crescent first dorsal; very large eye
  • Dark brown-purple to black back; no body bars or spots
  • A single large keel on each side of the tail base

  Tell it apart: The flat, broad sword (vs. the round spear of marlin and sailfish) plus the total absence of pelvic fins makes swordfish unmistakable among billfish.

  Easily confused with: Blue Marlin, Sailfish

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  Blue Marlin — Peaks late spring through summer; troll large skirted lures and rigged horse ballyhoo along the reef edge and bluewater rips.GearLarge skirted marlin lures10/0 circle hooksHeavy stand-up combo

  How to ID

  • Cobalt-blue back, silvery belly, with pale blue vertical bars on the sides
  • Round, spear-like bill (not flattened)
  • Pointed first dorsal that is LOWER than the body is deep
  • Two keels on each side of the tail base
  • High, rigid, heavily built body

  Tell it apart: A pointed dorsal lower than the body depth (vs. the sailfish's towering sail) plus a round spear bill and twin tail keels (vs. swordfish's single keel and flat bill) confirm blue marlin.

  Easily confused with: Sailfish, Swordfish

• 
  Red Grouper — Best in spring and fall; drop cut bait or large jigs to hard bottom and ledges, locking up quickly to turn fish from rocks.Gear7/0 circle hooksGrouper bottom rigsHeavy bottom-fishing combo

  How to ID

  • Brownish-red body with pale blotches/mottling
  • Scattered small black dots around the eyes
  • Second-dorsal margin straight and even (no deep notch between spines)
  • Squared-off (truncate) tail; large fan-like pectorals
  • Large bucket mouth; white-edged anal and tail fins

  Tell it apart: Red grouper has an even, non-notched soft dorsal and a squared tail with black freckles around the eyes; its big-mouthed grouper body and lack of prominent canine teeth separate it from the deeper-bodied, canine-toothed, forked-tail mutton snapper.

  Easily confused with: Mutton Snapper