If you choose to go for natural baits, you need to use smaller hooks. The two front fins have four spines. One surefire way of catching a mullet is through a mullet trap and here is how to make one. The mullet will eat the algae and by mistake, also the hook. This will work fished behind the spinner, but keep it small, say 1 to 2cms maximum, and after a few casts recharge the worm in the enhancing fluid. Go shorter for longer range and longer for casting close. Do not hold rods high but keep them low to avoid casting shadows. Its coloration is a grey slightly blue back, silver sides and a white belly with grey lengthways stripes. These silver-like fish are 1 to 3 feet long. Mullet makes a nutritious and delicious dish. The sea is their real home, though and that is where you can often catch them. However, a quick and effective way to catch red mullet if present is to fish baited feathers. There are days when you can barely see any. They also inhabit inshore shallow waters. It is also the smallest of the three attaining a maximum weight of about 5lbs in warmer seas to the south. But if you put a little time and effort into learning more about the species then your catch rate will definitely increase. They are fun to catch on light spinning gear and can be caught in big numbers. The fillet will be free from its backbone. They feed best during the flood tide but again will move out and often disappear as the ebb tide starts to run, though this can be depth driven. How to Fish the Florida Fall Mullet Run. With that stored air, mullet can survive concentrated low oxygen underwater conditions. In estuaries they will work through the main estuary channel with the tide, then enter drainage creeks and access salt lagoons as these flood deeper with the incoming tide. Also try differing speeds of retrieve. Basically, if the spinners don’t get them, the likelihood is that nothing else will, either. The fish is usually considered a trash fish by Floridians, but Chad finds a few mullet converts in the Panhandle and learns to fish them, eat them, and toss them! Keep the hook length short, no more than 6-inches and make it from fluorocarbon so there is a little stiffness there. This, biologists say is the mullet’s way of getting some air into their pharyngobranchial organ. Try changing the colour of the artificial ragworm baits if bites are hard to come by. Once you see the mullet taking in the bread on the surface, it is time to fish. By open coast it means rock ledges that give in to fairly deep water. The lead weights will bring the cast to the bottom. Using their spade-like lower jaw, mullet scrape whatever they can from rocks and eat them too. They thrive on algae, detritus (debris / litter), plankton and all sorts of aquatic vegetation. Mullet has been a source of nutrients in Europe dating back to the Roman period. The body has lateral deeper grey stripes running the length of the body. The food that gets thrown in or blown into the water, plus the bait used for crab lines becomes a natural ground bait that will hold the mullet’s attention. This method will often take fish feeding close to or on the bottom, especially in lagoons, but also on beaches when the surf is minimal in very calm weather. The natural drop of the bait can be key when float fishing, so keep this in mind. Re-connect the hook. Also, as when bubble float fishing, try to cast over the fish and then gently draw the float in towards them to avoid spooking them. Thick-lipped mullet are often referred to just as “grey” mullet, and sometimes as the UK’s bonefish due to their superb fighting ability, which is well deserved. It is best to eat mullet fish within the day it was caught as it easily gets degraded. Thick-lipped mullet are found right across Europe from the North African coast, throughout the Mediterranean, right up the coasts of Spain, Portugal, France, throughout the eastern side of the North Sea as far as the southern coast of Norway. The second type of mullet leap is often done by only one mullet at a time. I have used quite a few different techniques to catch mullet. Cane poles are still effective for catching mullet. They, like thick and thin-lipped mullet, also eat detritus sieved from the mud they excavate. Black also stands out better if there are tiny white wavelets breaking in a choppy sea. Position the trap making sure it will not float to the surface. Minimum Size Limit: None. Troll them a bit quicker (1500 to 2000 RPM) than you would normally. The knack is to choose a ball weight just heavy enough to be occasionally moved by the surf and tide to give this travel. And the other give away is the black spot at the base of the pectoral fin which thick-lipped and golden grey mullet do not have. Another commenter says mullet jump out of the water just for fun or for some other reasons unknown to many. For this type of fishing the modern freshwater feeder rods, such as the 11ft Cadence CR10 Feeder number 2 or number 3 are a good choice being a medium and stronger action respectively. Try to anticipate where the fish are going to be. Male mullet on the other hand get their stomach full with roe fertilizer which does not have any economic value. Watch the bread all the time for the sign of a take. There are two other types of common mullet, the thin-lipped mullet and the golden grey mullet. You can also use rag worms as baits but small cubes of skinless mackerel is still the best. If the pectoral fin is extended towards the eye it will only reach and cover the rear edge of the eye, which is a quick and reliable way to ID this fish. The overall colour is usually a blueish slate grey with silver sides and a white belly. They are quick learners and will stay outside the harbour confines until the boats head in, in the evenings then suddenly appear and begin to feed on the scraps and fish bits that enter the water as the boats unload and clean down. Float fishing with small mackerel baits is the best tactic, but you might need to use bigger cigar shaped floats rather than normal Waggler floats due to the sea swell. It will give you the satisfaction of catching a fish you have never caught before. Things such as waste fish scraps from commercial and charter fishing boats washing their decks off after a day’s fishing, human food waste is thrown into harbours and marinas including chips, bread, pasta and meat. Leftovers can make perfect baits for mullet. On the surf beaches when ledger fishing, try small bunches of these worms, say three or four, maybe more, with the hook just nicked through the head end leaving the tails to wriggle. They also show off selected South Wales beaches around the Gower and in Pembrokeshire. Mullet will also frequent the open coast being seen off beaches swimming in the inner surf tables like bass, but over high water will feed along the high tide line taking maggots from rotting seaweed and sea slaters in summer. This will draw any mullet into the area, but also induce bites from wrasse and pollack too, so sport can be lively. When fishing the surf tables, the other option is to ledger fish. Bait the size 8 hook with a small sliver of mackerel just enough to hide the hook. The spinning methods above are far more effective than trying to target thin-lips with conventional mullet fishing tactics. Old timers and biologists have several theories about this behavior. Do this for 20 to 30 minutes, then start to fish, but keep throwing in some groundbait every few minutes. Thus during the Mullet Run, fishermen also feast on the bigger fish since they are in the area for the mullet fish. They also often roll at the surface of the water or swim with their head held high above the water. When avoiding predators, mullet simultaneously jump on groups. You can buy these almost anywhere and are used by a number of anglers to catch smaller mullet for bait. This works well if you’re able to groundbait from above and can keep the groundbait and rig in the same vicinity. Remember though that when you are just starting with mullet fishing, you will be experiencing a lot of hits and misses. I live in Florida,and this is the way I catch mullet. At first throw in three of four ladles full, then wait a minute and add another. Some of the best areas, if you are allowed to fish them, are where the structure has a bend in it, or where the weed grows along the low water line. Slide on a 3mm pearl bead, then a small silver plastic spinner blade mounted on a clevis pin so it spins freely. When mullet fishing with the spinner system, fish just one worm with the hook and line passed almost fully down the body. Whenever you see a big dark ball somewhere between the surface and the bottom that’s the bait. Do this techniques a few days before fishing so you can regularly gather mullet in the same area. On the surf beaches they are not unduly influenced by the size of the tides but are definitely more orientated towards feeding when the bigger tides create more water movement and displace more food items. Mullet feed from the bottom of saltwater. It matters not if this brew is left to go “high” for a couple of days. The overall side profile shape of the thin-lip is that it is slightly slimmer in looks than the thick-lip, especially the head, but there are easier ways to ID the thin-lip. If you want to catch a good number of sea mullet, try the beach. If the player succeeds, they will be greeted by a cutscene of them reeling it in, and getting a coin bonus. Use a soup ladle to throw the groundbait mix into the sea. It also, in theory, lessens the time it takes to tighten into the fish, which can be an advantage when after mullet. In Ireland, thin-lipped mullet are present inside Cork Harbour and also again inside the river estuaries and saltwater lagoons of the west Cork area, especially in the Clonakilty and Union Hall regions. Daily Bag Limit: 50 fish per person. A whole mullet rig is widely used by anglers when catching large bluefish within the surf. Other baits that work well for mullet are maddie or harbour rag, very small bits of mackerel if you’re fishing by boats or have groundbait with mashed up mackerel or tuna in, small chunks of king ragworm, which can be deadly in harbours and when ledger fishing, also, in harbours and marinas, small bits of meat such as tiny bits of ham or pork as these will be thrown into the water naturally by boaters. They are easily spotted but difficult to catch because they are overly active. All you need is a small handline or light spinning outfit with 4-6lb line and a very small hook (No 10-12) with a small float (Piece of polystyrene) around 5 – 10 cm from the hook. This is rare though. Mullet prefer small insects and larvae. The carbohydrate content of mullet can help provide the power your body needs. This hiding of the hook secures the bait better but can make a big difference when the fish are in totally clear water and visually capable of spotting the hook and realising something isn’t right, which they do often. Every inshore fish in Florida that eats mullet can be caught during the mullet run. Where to look: When the mullet are running south the fishing action can be frenetic. It’s only been in the past decade or so that thin-lips were recognised in Ireland, though again maybe some confusion in identification may be responsible. Do not remove the scales and skin of the mullet. On to the swivel tie on 4 to 6ft of 6lb fluorocarbon. It also moves in and out of small estuaries that flank the beaches with the tide being found mostly in the main channels, but also breaking into the shallow mudflats at high tide and accessing saltwater lagoons that are fed by the daily tides. Mullet love maggots, too. You may use some mash since it liquefies quickly, making the mullet seek for something to bite. And, as is the case at other times of year, soft-plastics will produce plenty of fish. These can be more pronounced in juvenile fish, but somewhat faint on larger adults depending on habitat. As with catching Mullet, you can use either fresh bread from the bakery and just “squashed” onto the hook or you can make your own “Dough”. Open the lead line to release the catch. Mullet Migration . There are two ways in which you can set up to cover all options. The Talk Sea Fishing Guide to coalfish fishing. Work on the ribs and pin bones until the neck as you did with the gill plate. It also has dorsal fins that are far away from each other. Fin perfect first-year fish can often be found in small saltmarsh pools and shallow estuary creeks along with bass, also in shoreline rock pools after a high tide when they get stranded. The winter season is the time to go mullet fishing in offshore, ocean waters. It only needs to be dropped in really as the sea swell will carry the groundbait outwards. Smaller mullet though can still be caught with the mackerel’s skin intact. Mullet eat any food people eat. To be able to get a good catch of mullet, you need to know about their characteristics and what they normally feed on. In Ireland, mullet are found again along the whole coastline but are commonest south of a line drawn roughly between Donegal and Dundalk, with the southern and western counties seeing the best numbers of fish. The “pouch” will hold and trap the finger mullet. During the Mullet Run, mullet come in all sizes ranging from finger mullet (a few inches long) to the bigger roe mullet that weigh several pounds. I know a spot where there is like 5 mullet per a 10 by 10 area upto 20 by 20 area feet or so but more like 10 by 10. Their common range is throughout the Mediterranean, along the coasts of Spain and Portugal, the Bay of Biscay and France. Now fold it in two and pinch the crease down firmly. They will take any conventional bait as long as they are in tiny bits of pieces and in a small hook. An ideal cast net for finger mullet would be a ½ inch mesh with a diameter of about 8 or 10 inches. Millions of mullets leave their safe haven in North Florida and migrate to the south. Bait with a small flake of bread, or a couple of maggots if they are in the groundbait. Once the fish are feeding constantly, pinch on a 50p size piece of bread, crimp it around the hook length directly above the hook, then hide the hook point by enclosing the hook in the bread and crimping the edges with your fingers. This rig after casting straight out, is a good one for swinging round in an arc across and downtide therefore covering a wide area of ground helping to locate the fish which can be at very specific distances from the shore. They show on the surface with their typical V wake indicating their swimming direction. Talk Sea Fishing. We go through everything you need to know to catch this flatfish whether you are shore or boat fishing. It is in this area where anglers see large schools of mullet swimming through inlets and beneath bridges which attract game fish feeding on them. These need to grip though, so if in doubt add two float stops back to back at either side. Mullet are a feast to the bigger predator fish (Bluefish, Spanish mackerel, large ladyfish) and also for fishermen who take advantage of non-stop fishing during this season. Learn how we write our articles and review our products on our About page. It is therefore not difficult to use the right bait when catching mullet. They are a favored baitfish, for bluefish, cobia, puppy drum and other bottom fish. This need be nothing more than liquidised bread, which will work well on its own when fishing harbours and estuaries, but is even better if you had either a tin of tuna or mackerel in sunflower oil, which works really well especially when float-fishing as it hangs in the water column better due to the oil. In the surf, break up your old used bait and throw it into the surf in front of where you’re fishing. They are daylight feeders. They don't have time to check what's in front of them: a rock, an angler's hook or any other obstacle—natural instinct drives them to their winter breeding grounds—the Gulf Stream and their main enemies are marine predators, including tarpon, shark and snook. Black and silver mullet of all sizes from fingerlings to full grown adults exit in masse through the passes and turn south on a months long migration. It has a distinct and strong taste with an oily and moist flesh. Mullet Key Channel (Skyway) tide chart key: The tide chart above shows the height and times of high tide and low tide for Mullet Key Channel (Skyway), Florida. Also, on the golden grey, the scales in front and on top of the head end in a forwards facing dish shape.