Peacock Bass Late Spring, Early Summer Fishing report (5/22)

[Capt. BassinLou]

I have posted several videos and reports recently showcasing our phenomenal South FL Peacock bite. However, I want to tie in these reports and videos and begin to provide you guys with a type of quarterly fishing report, where I can fill in "some" additional information a few of you may find helpful.
(Note: I will preface these reports by saying, that I although I love sharing and teaching as much information about fishing for pea's and largemouth bass, these threads will not be disclosing "spots". However, I will cover area's from time to time.)

If there is ever a time of year that the Everglades comes alive, its right now!! Spring in the Everglades means one thing, lower water levels. When this occurs the canal systems in and around the perimeter of the Everglades become saturated with Peacock and Largemouth Bass. 

But when it comes to peacock bass fishing specifically, this is the time of year the water temps begin to warm up and Pea's begin spawn.  The spawn will last for several months over the late spring and summer. It's not surprising to hear reports of Peacocks spawning two or more times during this period time.



What's the significance of fishing during the spawn?

Peacock bass are known for their aggression, and during the spawn, their aggression make them very easy targets for anglers. Peacocks will be scattered for miles and miles along rocky and sedimentary habitat all across South FL.

Lures and Tackle:

When it comes to fishing for peacocks, believe it or not, keeping it simple will yield you plenty of nice fish.
Yes, many anglers use the live bait route fishing for peacocks, but I'm not live bait user, so I will only be discussing artificial lures.

Lures: Small to midsize jerk baits, crank baits, popping baits, prop baits, and spook style baits will all get the job done in the hard bait dept. For soft baits, smaller flukes, swimbaits, speed worms, and even stick baits will yield you strikes.

Tackle:  Medium spinning and/or baitcasting rods in the 6'8" to 7' lengths are ideal. Spooled with either straight 15-20 lb braid, or 10-15 lb mono, and/or combinations of braid with mono leaders, are generally the best ranges of line to be used. Use too light of a line, and you risk a higher rate of break offs, too heavy of a line will effect lure action.

Working the lures:  With all the hard and soft bait options mentioned, when it comes to peacock bass, fishing the lures faster than slower will yield you the greatest results. The key is matching the pea's aggression with lure speed. Some outings they want very fast aggressive movement, other outings they may want quick movements with sudden pauses. Simply put here, let the Peacock be your guide. Experiment with different speeds and cadences until you have the bite dialed in.

Hooksets: Here's where many anglers miss their chances of landing very nice peas.  This may be a little counter intuitive, but let the pea's set the hooks themselves. Their high levels of aggression make setting the hook really easy on them. Employ a firm sweeping hookset, and your peacock bass landing rate will be pretty high.

Hopefully I covered several teaching points for you guys, thank you for reading, and I will probably put out another report in the fall. Till next time!!



Capt. Bassin Lou:
aeguideservice.com

[big g]

Nice job Lou, lots of good info there!

[Capt. BassinLou]

Nice job Lou, lots of good info there!

Thanks George. Figured I change things up around here. 

[Time2Fish]

Great stuff!  Thanks for the info Lou!

[Capt. BassinLou]

Great stuff!  Thanks for the info Lou!

You're welcome bud, hope the info helps.