TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Anglers Can Outsmart Snapper, Sheepshead

OUTDOORS COLUMN

ADVERTISEMENT

The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 31, 2007

Anglers often say some fish commonly outsmart them, but whether any fish is bright enough to outthink even the dumbest of us is doubtful. If you watch the behavior at Gandy Ramp on a Sunday afternoon, you might not necessarily think so, but it is true.

In any case, at this time of year, two species with a reputation for being difficult to fool, sheepshead and mangrove snapper, move into strong feeding patterns. Whether you can turn that feeding into fillets, however, depends on how smart you are. I have had my IQ tested many times by sheepshead and have been found wanting, I would be the first to admit.

Sheepshead are almost certainly the leading bait stealers in Florida waters. The striped panfish have bone-hard mouths armed with narrow, sheep-like teeth, and getting a hook to stick anywhere in this orifice is a real challenge.

Add to that the fact that sheepshead normally feed by 'grazing' on shellfish, nibbling tiny bites the size of a pencil eraser, and you have one tough critter to introduce to Mr. Mustad.

Sheepshead also are not inclined to eat tough baits; they prefer shrimp, oysters and barnacles, none of which stay on the hook very well (One 'secret' bait found in Tampa Bay by accident is tougher; the imported Asian green mussel, now found on many seawalls and docks around the bay, makes an excellent offering, and every one you convert to bait means there is one less alien critter in Bay area waters.).

Mangrove snapper are equally tough to catch many times. The snapper have a larger, more predatory mouth, but they are inclined to bite with a violent snap of the jaws, and this often knocks the bait off the hook without said hook going where you want it to; you feel a tap on the line, but by that time the snapper is already settling back down on its rock pile, happily releasing sardine-flavored burps.

There are tricks that work to improve the score on both species, however.

First is a switch to microfiber line. This stuff is to monofilament what steel cable is to a bungee cord. It has no stretch, so it transmits any bite more clearly than the old standard mono.

Most anglers use 15- to 20-pound test for sheepshead and snapper, with a couple of feet of 20- to 30-pound clear fluorocarbon leader running from hook to microfiber line.

Hook size and design is another big one. Hooks that are too big, or not dead sharp, can cut your catch of either species to zero. A size 1 or 2, long-shank in light wire, is a good bet for sheepshead. For snapper, maybe a 1 to 1/0, medium-wire, live-bait style would be a good bet. Remember, the thinner the wire, the easier the hook is to sink - although you may bend one and lose that larger fish that happens along on occasion.

The trick in feeling the bite, with either species, is to use plenty of lead weight, but put it below the hook. The big sinker gets your bait on bottom immediately, even in current, and then you can tighten up and feel the bite because the hook is in a direct line with your rod tip. In sheepshead territory, water 4 to 20 feet deep, 1 to 3 ounces is usually OK, while if you find snapper deep, as along the ship channel in Tampa Bay, you may need 4 to 6 ounces when the current is running.

Live shrimp are readily eaten by both sheepshead and mangrove snapper, but if there are pinfish or other bait stealers around, it can be tough to keep the shrimp on the hook long enough for the eating fish to find it. For sheepshead, one good strategy is to cut the shrimp and use a piece no more than an inch long. That way, when the fish bites, he has to bite the hook.

For snapper, if shrimp are disappearing too rapidly, you may need to change to small sardines (sometimes tough to find in winter) or killifish, which can be netted around oyster bars on warm afternoons. Baits 2 to 3 inches long are good for 1- to 3-pound snapper; larger ones will eat 4-inch sardines and even threadfins.

Both species are a lot easier to catch if you chum the area first. For sheepshead, it's usually a matter of scraping the pilings for barnacles and mussels, or crunching up some oysters and dribbling them over the side. Snapper come to ground-up fish chum, hung in a net and dropped down far enough that the scent will drift across their gathering spot.

FREE SEMINAR: Vance Tice, Tampa Bay grouper trolling expert, presents a free seminar at 7 p.m. Thursday at Tightlines Tackle, 6924 N. Armenia Ave. in Tampa; (813) 932-4721

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT