West Sussex Catch Report - 17th May 2026

Report by David Lewis

Good evening, the fishing locally is still producing some very good fish but does seem very localised with plenty of fish in some areas yet lean in others so success is down to fishing the right areas at present, there are some of the bigger species regularly being caught mainly towards Bognor westwards and some venues are producing many different species per day such as Brighton Marina but hopefully the fishing will continue to improve all along our coast so why not get out and give it a go. 

Here are Worthing high tides times for the week ahead:

• Monday 18th May: 00:31 (6.3m), 13:01 (6.2m)
• Tuesday 19th May: 01:19 (6.2m), 13:55 (6.1m)
• Wednesday 20th May: 02:10 (6.1m), 14:51 (6.0m) 
• Thursday 21st May: 03:05 (5.8m), 15:49 (5.7m)
• Friday 22nd May:  04:05 (5.4m), 16:47 (5.5m)
• Saturday 23rd May: 05:10 (5.1m), 17:50 (5.3m)

Last week saw a couple of days of brisk south westerlies with heavy showers and thunder and lightning and the sea briefly coloured inshore waters for a few tides before clearing out again. Weed is more noticeable, but majority of venues are still perfectly fishable. 

Stingrays continue to be caught locally with fish showing mainly from the usual venues from Climping through to Pagham with a mixture of size fish ranging from 4 to over 40lb. Some decent Undulates have shown again from the west of the region mainly around Bognor, Pagham and Selsey whereas Thornbacks are slightly more widespread and they will show from East Sussex as well with Hove, Seaford and Eastbourne worthwhile venues to target them at night. 

Deeper water venues such as Brighton Marina have offered the greater choice in summer species on offer with Mackerel, Wrasse, Pollock, Bass and Congers all being caught through the weekend and it’s a venue which is also producing some decent sized Squid and Cuttlefish. 

Last week saw more Smoothounds caught with fish to 13lb caught though most fish are in the 5– 9lb range. As yet they are showing at many venues but not in the massive numbers which can show. Again, the best of the fishing seems to be from Climping through to Selsey. Some Dogfish showed last week at times when the water briefly coloured along with the odd small Bull Huss. Tope should soon make an appearance from marks around Selsey. 

Black Bream are frequently being caught and shoals seem widespread through the region and again some venues are seeing fish showing only in darkness whereas other spots tend to fish better in the daytime. Beaches have seen good catches, and they are also likely from the Marina and Harbour. 

There has been sizable Bass caught to both lures and baits during the past week or so along with some smaller School Bass. Different tactics work at different venues depending on sea conditions and if there are other bait fish present. Lure fishing tends to produce best results fishing either dawn or dusk. 

Anglers wishing to target flatfish will find plenty of Plaice are still showing from the Harbour and Marina, but this includes a lot of small fish although there are still sizable fish in amongst them. Flounders have shown randomly to worm baits and Sole can show at night with Shoreham to Brighton areas which are likely to see them caught. 
  
Other species caught recently include plenty of strap Congers with the occasional bigger fish from the Marina, odd Silver Eels, Pouts, and there are Mullet about although not seemingly caught on rod and line yet. 

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.