Despite the blustery weather of the last week or so, there is every sign that the best of the angling has started. Not that many of the weekenders have had a chance between the feast day and the daily grind that comes with a day job.

Having said that, there was nothing to stop most from doing a bit of prep work, particularly the stuff that might take booking up, like an engine service. With the May 24 barely three weeks away, the marine shops will be booked up and there will be all sorts of mad dashes to get boats overboard, serviced and into tip-top fashion. Pity the procrastinator; the time is at hand!

Commercial operators, and not a few amateurs, have been taking advantage of the resurgence of the hind grounds during the time that they are unprotected, but the fish seem to be aggregating there. So it comes as no surprise to see the roadside sellers featuring some nice-quality red hinds. This happy situation (for the fishermen at least) all comes to an end in a few days, as the protective legislation kicks in and the areas are closed to fishing until the autumn when the fish will have departed and spread all over the bottom.

Those concentrating on the pelagic species have reported increasing success with the wahoo and this can be expected to continue for the next few weeks at least, especially because the effort will start to increase with the onset of organised fishing tournaments next week. Trolling will remain the preferred method for a while until the number of tuna becomes fairly obvious as schools and then the chumming will start.

Another sure sign that it is fishing season comes from the inshore, where the grey snappers are starting to set up shop. Creatures of habit, these clever little fish — and some not so little — prefer the shady side of docks, jetties and just about anything else that keeps them out of the direct sunlight, at least when they are in shallow water. It is even better if the location is one where fish are cleaned on a regular basis.

A word to the wise: at this early stage, it is a lot easier to catch the snappers than it will be in a month or so. They are capable of learning and it becomes nigh on impossible to catch any of the larger ones. They simply will not take a baited line or play with it until they get the bait off. Really big ones are just about uncatchable, although there are certain times, such as at full moon or in the presence of fresh or live bait, when they will go a little silly and may make a mistake.

The species is also found in Florida, the Gulf and down the American coastline to Brazil. It is capable of living in near freshwater conditions and so is often found in brackish water, such as estuaries or swampy areas. Although this seems a bit far-fetched, it is only 100 or so years ago that areas such as Mills Creek and Riddell’s Bay were pretty extensive mangrove swamps with freshwater running in off the land making for the nearest thing to real estuaries that an island without any fresh surface water can provide. Another clue to its lifestyle comes from one of the other names applied to the grey snapper — the mangrove snapper.

Although very unlikely to be encountered these days, there was another snapper species that was once found in the inshore waters here, much like the grey snapper. This was the schoolmaster snapper. Although its general lifestyle was pretty similar to the grey, they were never present in very large numbers, but could be found occasionally and, no doubt, some were caught and perhaps thought to be a colour variation on the grey.

The largest catches of grey snappers and the other common snappers here, the whitewater and lane snapper (both of which are confused as whitewater snappers), occur over the reef and channel bottoms. A very limited number of commercial fishermen and old-timers know of an aggregation of the grey that occurs early in the season, near a full moon that allows large numbers of snapper to be caught with relative ease. This is a closely guarded secret and is very short-lived. About the only sign that it has occurred will be a sudden, probably singular, increase in the number of snappers sold by a fisherman. It is a one-off each year and will probably remain that way.

Grey snappers are otherwise the province of inshore fishermen and it is possible to do reasonably well if you take the trouble to use fresh bait and have the patience to outsmart the fish. Recently, Marcus Pimentel, a junior angler, managed to catch a few, including a rather nice specimen off the shore at Flatts Inlet, proving that diligence can pay off.

Evening hours are best, although a bit of light helps to attract the fish. Lighter lines are more readily taken than heavier ones, but snappers are quick to incorporate any underwater obstructions into their escape plans. Even on the most sporting of tackle, the grey snapper is abundant, available and more than capable of outsmarting many an angler lucky enough to con the fish into providing Tight Lines!!!