BAY

Bluefish have been biting in the coves and the main body of Greenwich Bay, says Ken Ferrara of Ray's Bait & Tackle. The waters near Halfway Rock and Gould Island are good bets for bigger blues. He also recommends the waters near Prudence Island's T-Wharf.

In Newport, the bass and bluefish bites have improved off Ocean Drive, Ledge Road and the Cliff Walk, says Sam Toland of Sam's Bait & Tackle. The fish are tight to the rocks, where they have been striking eels, chunks and plugs. The bite begins at dusk and improves after dark, he said.

Cruising the Providence and Seekonk rivers with John Torgan, Baykeeper for Save The Bay, Wednesday, we saw a lot of peanut bunker as well as adult menhaden. There were plenty of gulls cashing in on the bonanza, but swirling predatory fish were scarce.

Scup and tautog are biting near Hope Island and General Rock off North Kingstown, Ferrara says. Tautog have begun to bite along Newport's rocky shore, but the fish haven't begun to school up, says Sam Toland. Please see the note about the scup season below.

BEACHES AND SALT PONDS

Bass fishing has been good, but not red-hot, along the beaches, reports Al Conti of Snug Harbor Marina. Bass and bluefish have been hitting topwater plugs at Watch Hill this week, says Tim Yvon of Quonny Bait & Tackle, but there haven't been any autumn blitzes yet.

Bluefish have thinned out, Conti says, and bonito are scarce around Point Judith.

The bluefish and bass bite came alive Wednesday evening at the Charlestown Breachway and the beaches to the east, says Steve Travisono of Breachway Bait & Tackle. At Watch Hill, bluefish have been big but not numerous, says Yvon. They're feeding on mullet and baby bunker.

Stonington Harbor and the nearby reefs hold bass and bluefish that have been preying on menhaden, says Bill McEvoy of King Cove Outfitters. He recommends snagging menhaden and fishing them live. Montauk is the place to go for bonito and false albacore, he says.

Scup fishing has been excellent close to shore, Conti says, but a storm could push the fish into deeper water, where they are likely to stay. Please see the note about the scup season below.

Tautog fishing is improving in the waters off Narragansett and at the end of Charlestown Breachway, says Travisono.

OFFSHORE

The weekend presented the best tuna fishing of the season, says Al Conti. Bruce Weinstein fished the waters southeast of the Horns and caught bluefin in the 27- to 47-inch class as well as fish over 47 inches, says Conti. There were other anglers out there who also caught bluefin and mahi-mahi in water that is still warm.

Sam Toland caught several small bluefin, fishing west of the fleet at the Horns. "Hopefully, the Mud Hole will turn on soon," he says.

The foul weather that forecasters are predicting could change conditions quickly.

BLOCK ISLAND

Bass fishing continues to be excellent off the south side of the island.

Chris Willi of Block Island Fish Works fished in the waters off Black Rock this week and caught four bass between 38 and 44 inches on light tackle. All the bass were on the bottom.

Narragansett angler Mike Lanni, on a single overnight trip, caught bass weighing 62, 44, 39 and 37 pounds. They all hit eels.

Big-bass specialist Johnny Martini caught a 51-pounder this week, according to Al Conti.

There have been some bluefish off the North Light, said Willi, but bigger blues have been biting between the hooter and the bell buoy on the southwest side of the island.

FRESHWATER

"There were very few fish rising on the Wood River yesterday," Ed Lombardo said in a voice-mail message Wednesday. "The water level and the temperatures were ideal, between 60 and 64 degrees." He managed to entice trout to the surface with wasp and ant imitations. He also noticed a #18 light tan midge emerging, as well as some Blue-Winged Olive mayflies.

"This is the time of the season that one needs to wade very slowly so not to spook the fish," he advises. "Because the fish look for the warmer water in the center of the river and in shallow water such as on sand bars and flats."

FISHING SEASON CLOSES

Steve Travisono of Breachway Bait & Tackle reminds anglers that Rhode Island's recreational-fishing season for scup ended Sept. 25. The scup season remains open until Oct. 15 for charter and party boats. Charts of seasons and limits are available online at http://www.dem.ri.gov/programs/bnatres/fishwild/mfsizes.htm.

BEST BITES

Newport:

Bass, bluefish, tautog

Block Island:

Bass, bluefish

Watch Hill reefs:

Bass, bluefish

HOT BYTES

For more frequent fishing reports, go to Hot Bytes in the sports section of projo.com.

THE TIDES

The moon causes tides and affects the activity of saltwater and freshwater fish as well as animals on land. Anglers generally find the best fishing two hours before and after a high tide, but fish and other animals also become active around the time of low tide. This table shows the height of tides in feet at Castle Hill near the mouth of Narragansett Bay. Recreational shellfishermen prefer to dig for clams when the tides are lowest, shown on the chart as “minus tides.”

*-Morning tide

What's the catch? Send your fishing reports and photos to Tom Meade by e-mail at tmeade@projo.com.