Rude Sheeps and Rude Crewman

[Bluefin]

We fished the near shore artificial reefs off Sarasota today looking for sheepshead. Anchoring over structure in about 30 feet, crewman Peter rapidly caught the first convict fish, a nice medium sized fish. A fairly steady bite of reef fish ensued including a variety of grunts and mangrove snapper. Some of the Key West grunts were large enough to fillet and ended up in the box. The mangos were smallish, but a couple were keeper size.

The sheepshead bite was intermittent. We put half a dozen (or I should say Peter put half a dozen) sheepies into the box, all in the 16 inch to 17 inch range. I thought I had learned to deal with these bait stealers over the years, including actually trying to anticipate the hit. I have caught my fair share, but not today. Man, did they wipe me out. Time after time, after a hit, I ended up with an empty hook. To save me from total embarrassment, one sheepie decided to let me have the pleasure of his company and into the cooler he went. I think it is pretty rude of these fish to have developed into such proficient and thieving bait gluttons. I think it should also be considered a bit uncouth for a crewmember, who has never caught a sheepshead before, to so thoroughly show me up.

We fished 1/0 circle hooks using ½ ounce weights on fish finder rigs. Small shrimp and or sections of shrimp were used as bait – and I went through dozens of shrimp. We did end up with a nice variety of good tasting reef fish for the table.

[larrywitt]

Hey thanks for the near shore reef report.Saves time and fuel and can be a steady bite on great pan fish.
larrywitt

[Nailer]

Looks like a great time.

[HogTide]

Lol...funny report. Thought it was gonna be someone encroaching on your spot.

When I fish sheepies, I always use a rod with braid on it. I have learned that once I feel the first slight tap (which is them crushing your bait) I ever so slightly lift the rod tip and if I feel tension I set the hook!
Give it a try, I usually end up with a 50/50 ratio. Fiddler crabs are sheepy candy!

[Bluefin]

Thanks for the tip HogTide. I will be heading out a few more times for sheepshead before the bite is over - they are close to the top of my list for eating.

[Knot on Duty]

Nice report. I have better luck with J hooks and Jigheads with sheeps. Hogtide is spot on w how to feel when you should set the hook.

[Sea Snake]

Up here around Jacksonville, we use the braid also....but we use very short leaders....I usually use only about an eight inch leader of 20# flouro.

If that leader, that is in your picture, is what you typically use.....shorten it up drastically, and I guarantee you, you'll feel the bite much better. With that long of a leader....what you are feeling is them spitting out the shell.

Not knocking you in any way...just giving a helpful hint!!....

...trust me I learned the hard way too...


steve

[Phlypper]

Great report.

I will ditto what Knot oD said: jigheads, 1/16 - 1/4 oz depending on conditions.

I am a big fan of the Gamakatsu round heads. I know they are primarily used for bass fishing, and rust pretty fast when used out of the sweetwater, but they are sharp and strong, which I find are very necessary qualities when dealing with 'heads. I also use fairly light flurocarbon leaders (15-20 lbs test). These two changes in my tackle has tremendously increased my hookup rate. Example: when fishing alone in PI Sound this time of year, I can usually max out my 15 fish limit using less then 3 dozen shrimp.

We used to have a sheepshead in a 100 gal saltwater aquarium. When he was smaller, when he ate a fiddler crab or shrimp, he would take it in his mouth for a split second, crushing the shells, spit out everything, then go back to eat the softer pieces. When he got larger, he would usually skip the spitting-out step.

Having dove and snorkled to watch sheepshead around Cayo Costa, I noticed when the smaller fish were in very loose schools (maybe just a couple on a piling), they would eat like my fish in the aquarium ate. However, when in fairly tight schools, the smaller fish will take shrimp that I am feeding them, and quickly dart off, while the larger fish are far more deliberate in their take-and-turn. I can definitely relate that observation to the larger sheepshead I have caught, in that they don't so much "bump" the line, but there is suddenly slack in it when I was previously tight against the jighead.

[Bluefin]

Thanks for the tips guys. Phlypper - I used to keep saltwater aquariums with live rock and hours could go by just watching the behavior of fish. I never had a sheepshead though, and probably not a good idea with live rock and coral!