West Sussex Catch Report - 10th May 2026

Report by David Lews

Good evening, the fishing locally is still producing some good catches despite the winds coming from the east and the water being clear but with night tides approaching hopefully the fishing should produce some more great reports with species likely to include Smoothounds and Rays where as the daytime tides will continue to see the smaller summer species so why not get the rods out and try your luck.

Here are Worthing high tides times for the week ahead:

• Monday 11th May: 06:56 (4.4m), 19:36 (4.7m)
• Tuesday 12th May: 08:04 (4.6m), 20:36 (5.0m)
• Wednesday 13th May: 09:00 (5.0m), 21:26 (5.4m) 
• Thursday 14th May: 09:48 (5.4m), 22:13 (5.8m)
• Friday 15th May:  10:34 (5.7m), 22:58 (6.0m)
• Saturday 16th May: 11:21 (6.0m), 23:43 (6.2m)

With winds coming from the northeast for much of the past week the sea at times has been very clear with calm seas although the wind increased at times briefly through the weekend and added a bit of colour to the water’s edge. 

Conditions have not been ideal for a lot of species, but they are perfect for Stingrays and more have continued to be caught during the last week with usual venues from Climping to Pagham all worthwhile areas to target them from to baits such as king rag and crab. Thornbacks are still frequently caught with Bognor, Hove and Seaford producing fish plus there are Undulates showing mainly from Climping to Selsey. 

Smoothound catches continue with mixed sizes of fish showing from very small up to the occasional double. The big packs have yet to arrive but Bognor, Pagham and Selsey have produced the best catches of better sized fish. It should not be too long before the odd Tope may make an appearance from around Selsey. 

Black Bream are widespread through the region with some venues seeing fish frequently showing only in darkness whereas other spots tend to fish better in the daytime. Selsey East Beach, Pagham and Brighton Marina are all worthwhile venues to target Black Bream.
 
The calm conditions during the week and with good water visibility allowed vast shoals of Mullet to be spotted locally in the shallows from the beaches and in the rivers. 

Bass fishing is slowly improving with plenty of Schoolies about plus a few sizable fish. Lure fishing has accounted for a few at times mainly fishing low water on either the early morning or evening tides wading out. 

Plaice are still showing along with a few Flounders, increasing numbers of Soles plus the odd Dabs with venues between Shoreham and Brighton the most productive. Worm baits and casting at range can improve catch rates from the beaches.  

Brighton Marina is still producing a steady flow of Cuttlefish and Squid, but they are not in the numbers which are likely later in the year but at present they are decent sized. 

Other species reported recently in local catches include a few Mackerel, Garfish, Wrasse, Silver Eels, Pouts, Dogfish, Gurnards plus some strap Congers are showing at night. 

Prime Angling usual opening times are 8am till 5pm Monday to Saturday and 8am till 4pm Sundays. We are located at 26 Marine Parade, Worthing, BN11 3PT, just to the east of Worthing Pier with limited customer parking available at the front of the shop. For bait availability it is advisable to phone us on 01903 821594. We also stock a large variety of frozen sea baits as well as a wide range of freshwater baits and tackle. 

Visit our online website at primeangling.co.uk with plenty of new stock regularly added so keep an eye on our Facebook page for updates which will include plenty of new items from Japan. 

Please send us pictures of your recent local catches via our Facebook page messenger or email and we will aim to publish them for you in the weekly report. Please note we DO NOT claim ANY FISH used and mentioned in our reports are caught on our baits or tackle, it is a report to show what has and is likely to be caught locally.