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How to: GUIDE FOR OCEAN CITY GAME FISH
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F IS H ON! - OCEAN CITY

SPECIES BAIT OR LURE METHOD LOCATION AVE. WEIGHT RECORD SPECIES BAIT OR LURE METHOD LOCATION AVE. WEIGHT RECORD

Tripletail are opportunistic feeders, so you can use a variety of Use medium to heavy fishing tackle with a spinning or baitcasting rod,
Atlantic Sharks Whole dead fish and cut fish; live bait (fish) Anchor, chum and fish dead and live fish baits in chum slick and on bottom Offshore and coastal ocean waters 50 – 250 lbs 876 lbs
Tripletail baits such as live shrimp, small crabs, or baitfish. Artificial lures depending on your preference. Use a sturdy fishing line, preferably between Ocean waters over and around wrecks 3 – 10 lbs 11 lbs Mako
like jigs, spoons, and soft plastic baits can also be effective. 15 to 20-pound test.
Fishing bait near the bottom (suspended off the bottom) near submerged Wrecks in nearshore coastal waters, Ocean
Black Sea Bottomfishing, generally near and over underwater obstructions Sheepshead Fiddler crabs, mole crabs (sand fleas), clams 3 – 8 lbs 18 lbs
Bass Squid, crab, cut fish, clam, shrimp, diamond jigs, metal jigs (wrecks, reefs, rocks and rough bottom areas) Ocean waters 1 – 3.5 lbs 8 lbs structures waters, around buoys, and pilings in inlets
Trolling, casting or jigging to schools of fish with artificial lures; surfcasting Fish visible schools of fish around obstructions (buoys, towers, etc.) with small Wrecks in nearshore coastal waters, Ocean
Artificial lures - spoons, tube eels, metal squids, surface plugs Spadefish Pieces of fresh mussels and clams; pieces of jellyfish 3 – 8 lbs N/A
Bluefish with cut bait or lures (#1 or #2) double strength hooks waters, around buoys, and pilings in inlets
(large) Cut bait - fresh menhaden, mullet, herring, spot, ballyhoo or Chumming while using cut bait. Bluefish can be taken on streamer flies with Offshore and coastal waters 8 – 16 lbs 23.5 lbs
mackerel
a fly rod
Bottomfishing with bait; anchored or drifting from boats, also caught from
Trolling or casting to schools of fish with artificial lures Tributary waters around Ocean City,
Bluefish Artificial lures - spoons, feather lures, metal squids, surface Surfcasting and bottom fishing with cut bait and surfcasting with artificial Coastal ocean waters, 1 – 5 lbs N/A Spot Bloodworms, peeler crab, clam docks, piers, shore and surf; big runs of fish in the fall in lower Chesapeake Bay 8 – 12 oz N/A
(small) plugs and cut bait ocean surf, inlets and in surf and piers of Virginia Beach coastal ocean waters, and inlets
lures
Cast, drift or slow troll live baits around buoys, underwater obstructions and All coastal inshore and Chesapeake Bay
Live bait - eels, spot, menhaden, mullet schools of fish swimming on the surface. Anchor, chum and fish live baits, Ocean waters, around buoys, waters (tidal waters, including Bay tributary
Cobia Artificial lures - spoons, white bucktails, plastic eels, plugs fresh dead baits and cut bait in chum slick and on bottom. Cast and troll lures along coastal beaches, and inlets 20 – 50 lbs 94.6 lbs Troll artificial lures around bridges, piers, Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, rivers and Eastern Shore bayside creeks);
Cut bait - menhaden or spot around buoys, obstructions and to schools of bullfish (rays) or schools, pods or Artificial lures - spoons, plastic eels, bucktails, surface plugs, jetties or troll in vicinity of schools of fish (where gulls diving and slicks best concentrations of fish in main portion of
individual cobia swimming on surface Striped Bass swimming plugs, peeler crab, bloodworms, eels, cut bait, live on the water); cast bucktails and plugs around bridges, piers, and jetties; Chesapeake Bay and around Chesapeake Bay 5 – 25 lbs 57.2 lbs
bait bottomfishing with bloodworms in deep holes, creeks and rivers that flow into
Chesapeake Bay during winter peeler crab baits fished in tributary rivers and Bridge-Tunnel; large fish most often found
Bottomfishing with bait, anchored or drifting from boats, piers, docks, shore Tributary waters around Ocean City, along CBBT, main portion of Chesapeake
Croaker Peeler crab, bloodworms, cut bait, squid, shrimp 0.5 – 2 lbs N/A creeks near shore during summer
and surf coastal ocean waters, and inlets Bay and off the Virginia Capes at the mouth
of the Bay.
Trolling with lures, ballyhoo and squid; casting to schools of dolphin around
Artificial lures - offshore trolling lures
Dolphin weedlines and floating debris with cut bait (fish or squid) and lures (bucktails, Offshore ocean waters 2 – 20 lbs 74.5 lbs Fish at night from a drifting boat using natural baits with chemical lightsticks,
Cut bait, ballyhoo, squid Swordfish Whole dead squid and fish Offshore ocean waters 393 lbs
surface plugs, streamer flies) with baits weighted to maintain specific depths
Bottomfishing with bait on “fishfinder” rig. Running tides and late afternoons
Whole clam, peeler crab, whelk, peeler crab/clam Ocean waters, around buoys, Inlets, interior marsh areas, and ocean waters
Black Drum and evenings considered best, occasionally caught on bucktails or metal 40 – 60 lbs 79 lbs Whole dead fish - spot, croaker, menhaden
“sandwich”, bucktail and leadhead jigs along coastal beaches, and inlets Tarpon Anchor and fish live bait under floats, fish dead bait on the bottom and at along the beaches of Eastern Shore seaside
squids by casting or jigging to a school of fish Live bait - spot, croaker, menhaden, mullet, whole squid 40 – 80 lbs N/A
Artificial lures - plugs and weighted streamer flies various depths. Cast artificial lures to rolling fish barrier islands; fish deep holes on low tides
and shallow areas on high tides
Cut bait - fresh mullet, spot, menhaden, peeler crabs Bottomfishing with bait on “fishfinder” rig, trolling and casting spoons, plugs Ocean waters, around buoys,
Red Drum 30 – 50 lbs 70 lbs
Artificial lures - spoons, large plugs, jigs and jigs along coastal beaches, and inlets Wrecks in nearshore coastal waters, Ocean
Tautog Crab (blue, fiddler, green and mole crabs); clams; whelk Bottomfishing with bait over underwater obstructions (wrecks, reefs, rocks) waters, around buoys, and bridge pilings 3 – 6 lbs 28.8 lbs
in inlets
Live bait - minnows and small fish, frozen minnows, bluefish, Drift fishing with live or dead natural baits fished on the bottom; slow trolling
flounder, shark belly, squid, minnow/strip combination natural baits on bottom; casting from beaches and piers; trolling small buck- Ocean waters, around buoys,
Flounder 1 – 3 lbs 17 lbs
Artificial lures - bucktails; big strip baits and live spot or small tails dressed with strip baits (especially for big fish along Chesapeake Bay along coastal beaches, and inlets
mullet often used for big fish at the CBBT Bridge-Tunnel); casting bucktails Trout, Gray Artificial lures - bucktails, lead jigs with plastic tails, metal jigs Jigging or casting artificial lures to schools of fish on bottom or suspended Wrecks in nearshore coastal waters, Ocean
(Weakfish) Live bait - spot and small mullet, peeler crab, squid, cut bait above the bottom; bottomfishing with live and natural baits from anchored or waters, around buoys, and pilings in inlets 1 – 8 lbs 16 lbs
Surf zone of coastal waters, Ocean waters, drifting boat; surfcasting with cut bait or squid
Kingfish Bloodworms, shrimp, small pieces of cut bait, squid, sand fleas Bottomfishing with bait around buoys, 0.5 – 1.5 lbs 2.5 lbs
along coastal beaches, and inlets & piers
Spring method: peeler crab baits fished near shore of marshy or grassy areas Submerged grass flats and marshes, wrecks
Mackerel, Coastal and offshore ocean waters, from 5-35 Trout, Speck- Artificial lures - mirro-sided plugs, bucktails, plastic tail jigs
Atlantic Small tube worms and jigs Jigging to schools of suspended fish miles offshore 0.5 – 3 lbs None led Live bait - small spot, mullet, live shrimp on flooding tides; Fall method: casting artificial lures; also some live bait in nearshore coastal waters, around buoys, 2 – 4 lbs N/A
fishing, trolling and jigging and bridge/dock pilings in and around inlets
Live bait - menhaden, mullet, spot, small bluefish Slow trolling, drifting or anchoring with live bait; trolling with artificial lures,
Mackerel, Ocean waters, around buoys,
King Artificial lures - spoons, feather lures, nylon jigs, strip baits strip bait along coastal beaches, and inlets 5 – 20 lbs 47 lbs Tuna, Whole dead fish - bally hoo, squid
and small whole ballyhoo and ballyhoo Bigeye Artificial lures - feather lures, cedar plugs, offshore trolling Trolling Offshore ocean waters 100 – 175 lbs 375.5 lbs
Mackerel, Small artificial lures - spoons, metal lures, feather and nylon Trolling; casting to schools of fish Coastal ocean waters, particularly off inlets, 1 – 3 lbs N/A Artificial lures - cedar plugs, feather lures, spoons, squid, small
Spanish lures Small live baits - menhaden, mullet along tidelines, and over coastal wrecks Tuna, Bluefin Trolling, chunking and chumming Offshore ocean waters 30 – 70 lbs 625 lbs
fish
Whole dead fish - ballyhoo, mullets, spanish mackerel, squid
Blue Marlin Artificial lures - offshore trolling lures, and live small dolphin, Trolling Offshore ocean waters 150 – 400 lbs 1,135 lbs Tuna, Whole dead fish - bally hoo, squid, Trolling, chunking and chumming Offshore ocean waters 30 – 70 lbs 236.5 lbs
bonito and skipjack tuna Yellowfin Artificial lures - feather lures, cedar plugs, offshore trolling
Whole dead fish - ballyhoo, mullet, squid, strip baits, eels Trolling; occasionally casting live baits to marlin “balling” bait or swimming
White Marlin Offshore ocean waters 40 – 60 lbs 135 lbs Tunny, (False Artificial lures - small feather & nylon lures, spoons, cedar plugs Offshore and coastal ocean waters; occasion-
Artificial lures - offshore trolling lures, pilchards, cigar minnows on surface Trolling, casting metal lures to surface fish 6 – 14 lbs 77 lbs
Albacore) Strip baits ally in lower Chesapeake Bay
Whole dead fish -ballyhoo, small mullet, strip baits, squid Trolling; also, sailfish seem to be attracted to slow trolled live baits fished in
Sailfish Offshore ocean waters 20 – 40 lbs N/A
Artificial lures - small offshore trolling lures, live bait (small fish) similar methods as used to slow troll for king mackerel Artificial lures - offshore trolling lures, feather
Wahoo Trolling Offshore ocean waters 20 – 40 lbs 131 lbs
lures, spoons, large plugs, small dead fish