Inshore fishing will get most of the attention this month as the days are shorter and the action is hot. Remember that specks—a.k.a. spotted seatrout—are closed for the month of February, but that doesn’t mean you can’t play catch and release ’til your hands hurt. The specks stack up in the deepwater canals and estuaries from St. Andrew and Choctawhatchee bays west to Pensacola and Perdido bays. Residential canals along the Intracoastal Waterway and rivermouths up and down the Panhandle hold these vulnerable fish this month. Trout are more lethargic as they hold in this warmer, deep water but they will eagerly devour a soft-plastic shrimp or soft-body grub in 1⁄ 4- to 1⁄ 2-ounce sizes. Live or fresh dead shrimp are deadly here, too, but not necessary to have a busy and productive day.

Most flounder are offshore sulk-ing on the nearshore reefs, but you’ll find a few fish coming back into the bays and passes toward the end of the month.

Pier and surf fishermen should find pompano starting to show up on warmer days toward the end of the month. Pompano fall for small orange-and-white pomp jigs prevalent at local tackle stores. They’re cheap, too, only setting you back about $.99. Some folks tip their jigs with shrimp to entice these fish, but the tried-and-true method is a standard 2-drop rig. This rig consists of a 20-pound leader, with two dropper loops and a pair of small circle hooks or Kahle hooks. Place a pair of sandfleas or small fresh-dead shrimp on the hooks and a 1- to 3-ounce sinker on the end of the leader and you’re ready for action. Surf spikes come in handy here, and most veteran anglers work a 2- or 3-rod spread to find the fish.

BEST BET: PANHANDLE

Panhandle fishermen have gotten spoiled with the bull redfish revival since the net ban, and no one can argue otherwise. “We used to have seasons with these fish, but they are here year-round now,” Capt. Wes Rozier, a busy Pensacola inshore guide asserts.

The bulls have gotten to where they are so prolific, that all you have to do is spot working birds near the pass or just outside along the beaches and just watch as hundreds and hundreds of thundering redfish turn the water from aqua-green to reddish brown.

“We’ve started fishing with large topwater plugs and mashing the barbs down.” Rosier explained. Thirty- to 40-pound redfish are not uncommon and make for excellent gamefish photo-and-release opportunities. By crimping down the barbs on the hooks, you increase the chances that your fish will spit the hooks, but you also increase the chances of a safe release and up the survival rate of this awesome quarry.

Fishermen will find it easy to get multiple hookups with these aggressive, schooling fish. Reports of 10 or 20 fish released a day are not uncommon; the key is to find the birds. They are and will always be better fishermen than you and I. Medium-action spinning or conventional gear will get the fish to the boat quicker than ultralight tackle and won’t stress the fish too badly.

FS