Sardines? Or something different

[bulld0g62]

Lately ive been getting small sardine-ish baits. 2-3 inches long, very soft, silver with green backs. Are they just tiny spanish dines? Or some other type? I havent had much
Luck with them for bait, they seem to just get
Plucked off my hook since theyre so soft. Ill get a pic next
Time, didnt think to on my last trip.

[Eddie305]

Im sure those are pilchards, Theres alot right now around key biscayne ( Rickenbacker ), Last time i was out there we was catching snappers with them but small snappers tho.

[bulld0g62]

Dont think theyre pilchards. They are long and thing, soft, amd bright green backs.they look like spanish sardines, but everytime i catch those they have blueish backs and are bigger

[Eddie305]

Yea thats the same thing im thinking, spanish sardines are super smooth and have a blue backs, thats y i think they are pilchards, thats the color ive been catching them now at the beach.

[bulld0g62]

yea im gonna get a pic of any i get this weekend.

[JustTVH]

they are pilchards. catch one and see if their bellies feel like a razor. to keep them from getting taken hook at the soft spot behind the head. they last longer than way too.

[bulld0g62]

Not a pilchard for sure, pilchards are around. But these are torpedo shaped, look like spanish sardines but real small, an inch or two usually, sometimes a bigger one is snagged. Instead of the blueish backs, its bright green. They are smooth completely around the body, have scales also. Is it a different type of sardine? Or an anchovy maybe

[Eddie305]

So i went fishing yesterday till this morning and all the pilchards i was catching were green backs with a blueish color to them, Something like the spanish sardines but they were pilchards, Im 100% sure those are the ones ur talking about i kept all the ones i caught to make chum or use as bait again, Im sure the temp of the water is making them turn that blueish green but you are catching pilchards, Spanish sardines look like a cigar shaped something like a football thats being pulled from the 2 tips, The pilchards are roundish like half a leaf, And they are small the ones i caught this morning, Biggest one i caught was about 2.5 inches and that was 1 in about 500 that i had.

[bulld0g62]

Just baby sardines i guess. They dont have the razorbelly like
Pilchards. Didnt manage to get any today though

[Eddie305]

I caught alot of baby pilchards on saturday morning and the small ones didnt have razor bellies