The Snook is a large, Pike-like fish with a protruding lower jaw and a prominent black lateral stripe that runs from just behind the gills to the tail. The Snook is overall a silvery-green color with fins that are sometimes bright yellow.

The Snook is a sleek and extremely strong fish. They range in size up to 48" and 50 pounds. The largest Snook ever caught in Florida USA weighed about 44 lbs. 11 ounces. Snook are found in the Western Atlantic from South Carolina USA to Brazil, South America. Snook are tolerant over a wide range of water salinity from freshwater to offshore saltwater. They are however, extremely sensitive to temperature changes, particularly cold weather. Water temperatures below 60 deg. F can cause the Snook to go into shock or even die. In cold water areas, Snook can be found congregating in the warm water discharges of power plants. They normally tend to gather near shorelines, inlets and estuaries and prefer structures for shelter such as mangroves, rock formations and reefs.

The Snook is a powerful fish and a thrilling catch, much like the freshwater Largemouth Bass. That is one of the reasons why it is one of the most sought after and prized gamefish to catch. Once hooked it’s strength and speed is hard to compare to any other game fish of its size.

Fishing Basics:

Live shrimp – Once the Snook has been located, fish live shrimp using a 10 to 20 pound outfit with 30" of 40# shock leader tied to a 1/0 or 2/0 hook. Weight the line with only enough split shot or sinker to get it to the bottom.

Live bait fish – Mullet, menhaden, pinfish,etc. Again using the same outfit but using a larger hook to match the bait.

Lures – A wide variety of lures and jigs are used to catch snook. Some of the favorites include the Red Tailed Hawk jig and many of the Mirrolures.

Tides:

The best time to fish for Snook is from one hour before high tide through the first three hours of the falling tide.

Location:

The majority of Snook caught by recreational fisherman are taken during the summer months. Some of the best Snook fishing spots are Tampa Bay on the central west coast of Florida and Jupiter, Lake Worth, and Sebastian Inlets on the central east coast of Florida.