Yellowtail — *Seriola lalandi* (California yellowtail)

Published · Researched 2026-09-20

Yellowtail — Seriola lalandi (California yellowtail)

Where in SoCal

Coronado Islands (Mexico — "the nados"), san-clemente-island, catalina (SE of Abalone Bank, east end, lighthouse, quarry area, Ribbon Rock), La Jolla kelp (kayak hotspot), Rock pile, kelp paddies south of Ensenada, the-181/the-182, nine-mile-bank, huntington-flats area. Party boats from Seaforth, H&M, Fisherman's Landing, Dana Wharf (Fury), Newport, Long Beach target them.

Best season / months in SoCal

• Peak: April–August
• Good: March, September
• Slow/off: October–February (year-round presence possible but slow; best known as a spring–summer fishery)
• 2026 social evidence: Mar 20 kayak yellowtail at La Jolla; Mar 31 Coronados yo-yo iron planning thread; Jun 10 Catalina yellowtail advice thread; Jun 26–28 Searcher paddy-hopping yellowtail south of Ensenada; Aug 1 Rock pile/Coronados multi-yellowtail trip; Sep 9 Fury (Dana Wharf) landed 46 yellowtail.

Best bait / lures

• Live sardine and live mackerel (on heavy leaders at Catalina) — the daytime standard
• Surface iron: Tady 45, Salas 6X/6X Jr, JRI 6; favored colors mint, scrambled egg, red crab, blue/white, "birdshit yellow" — detailed community consensus in the Mar 31 yo-yo iron thread
• Yo-yo (heavy iron) jigs 150–200 g worked fast from the bottom
• Trolling X-Raps around kelp paddies; paddy-hopping in summer

Social consensus (platform + group context)

• Facebook — "San Diego Fishing" (Mar 31, 2026, Kyle Deneen): asks what weight/length yo-yo iron to buy for a Coronados yellowtail trip in two weeks; long comment thread of experienced anglers converging on surface-iron brands/colors above — the clearest community bait consensus for yellowtail in this batch.
• Facebook — "San Diego Fishing" (Jun 15, 2026, David Belkin): asks Mission Belle vs Grande for a Coronados yellowtail day trip; commenters overwhelmingly push the San Diego out of Seaforth (fish counts, free parking), Mission Belle second — strong fleet knowledge.
• Facebook — "San Diego Fishing" (Jun 10, 2026, Cristian Rodriguez): asks where to find yellowtail at Catalina; community gives specific structure (Abalone Bank SE, Ribbon Rock, lighthouse), live mackerel on heavy leaders, and notes San Clemente Island has been better than Catalina.
• Facebook — "San Diego Fishing" (Aug 1, 2026, Esteban Beas): photo carousel of a multi-yellowtail day at the Rock pile / Coronados with Cortez Sportfishing.
• Facebook — "San Diego Fishing" (Mar 20, 2026, Bart Lawhorn): spot-burn thread — a La Jolla kayak yellowtail post drew 50+ kayaks and 30 boats the next day; La Jolla is the well-known spring/summer kayak yellowtail fishery.
• Community tools consensus for finding tuna/yellowtail intel: paid Terrafin and FishDope, free NOAA swell data and windy.app (Apr 27 thread).

Social validation tier

Tier A (High) — many corroborating posts across three groups, detailed bait/location consensus, 2026 trip evidence spanning Mar–Sep.

Size / bag limits (California, 2026)

• VERIFIED (CDFW Southern Region page): 10 yellowtail per day; minimum 24-inch fork length, except that up to 5 may be under 24 inches.

Images (6, all verified JPEG, md5-unique)

All in ../images/species/yellowtail/. View: catch/angler photos unless noted.

1. 01.jpg — Amigo "109 Yellowtail!" — fishreports.com fish report photo
2. 02.jpg — California yellowtail catch photo — africahunting.com
3. 03.jpg — Independence Sportfishing catch photo, Oct 2024 — fishreports.com
4. 04.jpg — Independence Sportfishing catch photo (2) — fishreports.com
5. 05.jpg — 32-lb yellowtail, Erna B. — Channel Islands Sportfishing, Jun 2021 (landing report photo)
6. 06.jpg — Halibut/yellowtail charter report — fishingbooker.com listing photo

UNVERIFIED / unknowns

• Fall/winter availability is inferred; no Oct–Feb 2026 trip evidence collected.
• Vessel recommendations (Mission Belle vs San Diego) are community opinion, not catch statistics.