Doctrine · not a honey-hole list

Seasonal fundamentals

When a coast, a type of water, and a fish actually line up. If you elected Texas on the list, this page opens on Texas — Seychelles stays off the board until you ask for it. Filter by region, method or habitat, and species. The year bar is peak versus present. Limits cite TPWD and FWC — verify before you keep one.

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico — urban tarpon, east-island flats

DNER water. Real NOAA gauges. Not a Keys copy and not FWC.

San Juan is Condado Lagoon and the bay — tarpon under the bridges, snook in the edges, a north-coast drop that is an offshore method. Vieques and Culebra are the Spanish Virgins: more sand, bones and permit, Mosquito Bay a reserve. La Parguera is the southwest mangrove desk, clocked to Magueyes 9759110. Blue marlin live in the story of this island; this brief will not invent a billfish on a lagoon. License is DNER. Do not paste a Jupiter snook closure onto Condado.

January. Tarpon in Condado if the winter wind lays down. Snook in the edges. The north drop is a coat and a kite.

January · peak

What is actually on

Bonefish

Peak Present Off

Closures

No coast-wide harvest closure on the board. Still verify before you keep a fish.

Yellowtail snapper

Ocyurus chrysurus

Present JanuaryPuerto Rico

Thermal window

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70–86°F · best 74–82°F

Islamorada to Key West, then the Bahamas and the Spanish Virgins. Patch reefs and the first drop. Absent from Texas bays.

Fly. 7–8 wt. A small baitfish or shrimp on the edge of the chum. This is a boat on the reef, not a poling skiff.

Spin. Chum and a light fluorocarbon. The Keys live on this fish. Not a Galveston trout.

Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico: verify DNER snapper rules.

Official source

Want this week’s weather on top of the doctrine? Read the Saturday Letter.