Flounder Fishing

When Nov roles around all I think of is flounder fishing. They have two eyes, but with a twist - both on the same side of its head. The flounder is almost immediately recognizable to most people. Much of the U.S. coastal waters are inhabited by a similar species to our Gulf and Southern flounders. It's sometimes difficult to tell the difference, but both share a similar characteristic - they are fabulous dinner, probably the mildest tasting fish in the sea. Flounders are born looking like most any other fish, including normally positioned eyes. As they develop, however, the right eye begins to shift toward the left. Once out of the adolescent stage, flounders take up their position in life, half buried in the sand, eyes looking upward, waiting for food to pass them by. Their coloration is almost a perfect match for the sandy bottom, and they are nearly invisible. Flounders have a set of choppers, and gobble up shrimp and crustaceans given the chance. Oddly enough, most flounder are caught by accident - that is, peoples are fishing for something else, and a flounder appears on the end of the line. They can be targeted by fishing a live sardine over sand or mud bottom in this way: cast out, then slowley retrieve the bait. When your bait passes over Mr. Flounder's resting spot - snap! They put up a dogged fight, using their flat bodies to provide resistance to your upward pull. They don't get too big around here - a couple, maybe 3-4 pounds, but as I mentioned before, a delicious and mild fish. My favorite spot to fish for Mr. Flounder is on Fort DeSoto.