Catching Spiny Lobster

[Fishtails]

Rick....I have good news and bad news on the lobsters you want to catch while your in Florida. Good news is they are not hard to get once you learn how to spot them and the technique used to catch em.

Bad news....lobster season ends March 31st.

That being said...I'll tell ya how it's done anyway for you or anyone else who wants to give it a whirl sometime. I have pictures of the ones I caught this past trip, but my sister has them at the moment.

Basically, all you need is a tickle stick, a net and a catch bag.

I catch them by snorkeling in the shallows, both gulf and ocean side. First....Locate the lobster. They can often be found under ledges and corals, in rock piles and holes. Spotting them can be easy once you learn what to look for. Look for the long, red spiny antennae sticking out from under the rock. Many times, if you locate one, there will be others with it. Often times one rock may hold 3-5 lobsters. I caught 3 from one single rock this past trip. I search for shorelines that have some rocks or structure. Sandy beaches will not hold lobsters.

Next step once you locate a lobster is to "tickle" it out into open space. Tickle sticks are no more than a three foot long stick. Use the stick to poke the lobster's backside and it should come crawling out from its hiding place. Here is a little hint on multiple lobsters holding up together. Always coax the largest one out first. That will be the leader of the group and getting him first will make rounding up the others easier.

Okay.....once you poke him in the backside with your stick and you coax him out of his hiding space, place your net behind his tail about a foot back. With your tickle stick, poke him in the antenna and he will scoot backwards right into your net.

What your looking for:

Good luck and I'll shoot you a pm on the fishing scene down in the Keys within a couple days.

[dieselhp]

Looks cool Rod.

I checked it on the web and found out about the season. O Well I will just have to fish.