FISH REPORT

Freshwater

Striped bass: Robert Flaata, Palmdale, set a Castaic Lake record with a 43-pound, 1-ounce striper he caught on a swimbait. He also caught stripers weighing 15-8, 14-0 and 12-1. The fish are shallow and deep and some are using downriggers and fishing as deep as 100 feet. At Lake Skinner, mostly smaller fish are being caught on anchovies and mackerel. A 17-8 was landed by Frank Ling, Riverside, on a swimbait in the east end. Lake Mohave on the Colorado River has been good too.

Largemouth bass: The spring bite is at hand as the fish are moving up to spawn. Lake Casitas has fish showing in the shallows and yielded a half-dozen over 10 pounds. Mark Majesky, Newberry Park, caught an 11-2 on a Castaic Trout. Diamond Valley Lake is improving steadily too. An 11-1 was landed by Greg Mahonea, Murrieta, on a Texas-rigged plastic work, and an 8-4 was landed by Adam Pereida, Yucaipa, on a swimbait. Castaic Lake is another active bass fishery, with live crawdads best. Top bass there was a 10-7 by Dan Beitzer, Castaic, on an Osprey.

Trout: Clearing water after the rains is improving the bite. The usual places are producing and notable catches are many: a 22-8 at Santa Ana River Lakes by Mike Bennett, Chino, on a Lip Ripperz lure smeared with Nitro Grease; a 14-8 at Corona Lake by Brian Larson, Rialto, on an Amino Egg doused with Nitro Grease; a 10-8 at Irvine by Alex Moreno, Foothill Ranch, on Power Bait and Secret Sauce at the red clay cliffs; a 7-10 at Angler’s Lake by Jesse Mena, Hemet, on a night crawler.

Catfish: Muddy water is to their liking and the fish have been active since the recent rains. Tops was San Vicente in the San Diego area, where a 78-12 blue catfish was caught by Preston Jones on mackerel by the buoy line. Blue catfish at 32-7 and 22-6 were also caught there. Lower Otay produced some big channel cats, topped by a 16-4 for Lew Bush, San Diego, on mackerel by the buoy line. Locally, a 12-pound channel cat was caught at Laguna Niguel Park Lake by Norman Kleen, Culver City, on a night crawler.

Panfish: The Lake Isabella crappie bite rates the best, mainly in the trees on minnows. Lake Lopez on the Central Coast is good for bluegill and crappie. Locally, Lake Cachuma is the best bet. Red-ear perch are very active and biting on night crawler pieces at Jackrabbit Flats.

Saltwater

Best bets: Rockfish season has been good since opening March 1, with limits or near-limits the rule on most Southland vessels. This is also halibut time and the flatfish are sure to respond to the gradual increase in water temperature caused by warmer weather.

Trout plants

Locations: To be stocked this week: Cuddy Creek Pond, Hansen Lake, Little Rock Reservoir, Piru Creek (Frenchman’s Flat) (Los Angeles); Yorba Regional Park Lake (Orange); Cahuilla Park Lake (Riverside); Cucamonga Guasti Park Lake, Glen Helen Park Lake, Prado Park Lake, Silverwood Lake, Yucaipa Lake (San Bernardino); Cuyamaca Lake and Morena Lake (San Diego).

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For an extensive and updated fish report, go to latimes.com/fish.