Saltwater

Choosing the right time to go seining is important if you want to be successful in your catch.  Fish and other species aren't always there for the taking; they travel in and out with the tides and migrate to different areas depending on the season.

Seining Jacksonville Beach.  Submitted by L. Reimann. 

The species you will catch with a seine net are limitless; it all depends on what species are visiting the area you are seining. Local, state and federal regulations limit you on what you can harvest.

Match your net size to the species targeting! The size of your netting, the length and depth of the net, and the strength of the line determine how big a species you can haul in. If you set a lightweight net in a body of water with strong fighting fish swimming around, and they fill up your net, you will not be able to haul it in. If your net has 1-inch holes and you seine through a school of tiny fish, all the fish will escape. 

       The Highest Quality seine nets in America!

Be prepared to be out there about 1-1/2 hours after high tide or 1-1/2 hours after low tide.  It is the changing of the tide that predicts the movement of the shrimp/fish.  Note: If you go at low tide coming in, don’t park your belongings at waters’ edge or you soon will be chasing your bobbing articles (voice of experience). ​

TIP #1:  Please remember to clean up the beaches at the end of your seining adventure.  Leave no evidence of your ever having been there.  This, most especially, includes throwing back into the ocean every living creature caught in your net that you are not saving for consumption.  Remember, we want to leave the joy of seining possible for many generations to come. 

TIP #2:  Please do not leave old netting in the water or on the beaches.  Dispose of it properly.  The best way would be to find a recycler.  However, if you must throw it away, leading to it being put in a landfill, then please, please cut it up into small pieces and bag it securely.  Protect our wildlife!

TIP #3:  Fallacy:  Seine for shrimp only at night.  Yes, they are most active at night.  However, in the daytime hours they tend to hunker down at the bottom - and a seine is the perfect mechanism for catching them there.  The largest haul I ever made was in broad daylight with the incoming tide.  We reached our daily limit of shrimp with only 2 pulls!

This is the most important part:  When seining, the bottom of the pole should be slightly ahead of the top of the pole, pointing in the direction in which you are moving.  Always, always keep the lead line on the bottom and always keep the bottom of the pole ahead of the top of the pole even when bringing it in to shore.  

Tips for Seining

When working a seine, it is important to use the net properly in order to maximize your catch.  Start out with one person holding the net in shallow water while the other person walks out deeper (usually strongest person goes deep).  Both seiners walk parallel to the shoreline for a distance.  The “deep man” will call when it is time to come in, as he will tire faster.  The shallow man will slow his pace to a crawl as the deep man circles in towards shore.  When he reaches near shore, both seiners bring the seine in as rapidly as possible. 

Learn More About Seining

What is Seining?

You can go seining at any time in freshwater, but keep in mind that the weather, the season, and the moon phase can effect the abundance of species available at any given time. 

Please follow the regulations for your state for species allowed and bag limits as there are bans/restrictions in some states for freshwater seining.

When to Go Seining

Our dad showing a "newbie" the setup for a seine circa 1985.  

How to Use a Seine Net

Using a Seine Net

Take a Child Seining

Bountiful Seines

Seine fishing on Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seine_fishing​

• Shrimp
  
• ​Mullet
  
• Bait
  
• Fish - flounder, whiting, mackerel, ​reds, and more

Beach seining is an activity that involves pulling a long seine through the water of an adjacent beach.  A seine is usually manned by two people, one on each end of the net.  With smaller nets, and where allowed, one person can anchor an end to the beach and swing the other end through the water and back around to meet the anchored end.  With longer nets, you may opt to have "middle men" to help bring the net in, especially if you have a large catch.

Take your kids seining: Fun, educational, and they catch their own seafood!

​Take the tech away from the kids and get them OUTDOORS. Teach them practices that could provide them a better future (and we aren't talking about money). Teaching a kid to seine is fun, educational, and they learn yet another method for putting food on the table. It's also a great way to teach them conservation....keep only what you can eat, stay within the regulations, and set everything else free.

Freshwater

Species You Can Catch With A Seine Net