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Snapper Season Staggers To Opening

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By FRANK SARGEANT | The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 30, 2008

The Florida Gulf red snapper season opens Sunday - or, it opened April 15, depending on which group of lawmakers and law enforcers you ask.

In an unusual disagreement, the state's Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission balked at a federally proposed shortening of the red snapper season in the Gulf. As a result, the state opened fishing inside the 9-nautical-mile limit of state waters April 15. The state season will remain open until Nov. 1. But in federal waters regulated by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, the season opens June 1 and ends Aug. 5, making it one of the shortest seasons for any species that can be legally harvested. The feds control all waters beyond the 9-nautical-mile limit.

Federal regulators say they're tightening the season because red snapper numbers are down. State regulators basically say "baloney," and virtually all anglers agree with them, because they are catching numbers of red snapper that have not been seen off our coast in decades.

Captain Randy Rochelle, a long-seasoned offshore skipper, has been emphatic: "There are so many red snapper on a lot of my numbers that I can't get a bait down through them to catch grouper, period. It's a great fishery, but we're not getting to make much use of it with the federal rules the way they are now."

In any case, from Sunday until Aug. 5, the tasty reds will be the target of most offshore bottom fishers.

Not Always So Abundant

The fish were rare here from the 1950s until the late 1980s, then gradually started becoming more abundant. Some anglers believe the fish followed the Trans-Gulf gas pipeline into area waters; the giant pipe is still a nearly certain route to snappers. But these days the fish are also found on rock piles miles from the pipe.

Best fishing is typically from 50 feet out, and the largest fish come from deeper waters.

Anglers use typical grouper tackle for red snapper, because the fish are found in much of the same terrain and reach about the same sizes. Most are 5 to 6 pounds, but fish to 20 pounds are not unheard of. The all-tackle record is 50 pounds, 4 ounces. Sixty-pound tackle is typical, with egg sinkers of 4 to 6 ounces above the swivel and leader. Hooks of 6/0 and larger do the job.

Snapper are more active fish than grouper, and tend to stack up on top of rocks and other cover. They form a classic "Christmas tree" pattern on the depthfinder when they are found in large schools, which is not uncommon with smaller fish.

They take fresh or frozen sardines and squid, and also readily grab live sardines, threadfins or pinfish on shallower drops where the quick pressure change does not kill the bait before it reaches full depth. They sometimes take big jigs and heavy spoons jigged vertically but, like most snappers, they're a lot more likely to eat natural bait than artificials of any kind.

Depth Of Bait Is Key

The main difference between fishing for snapper and for the grouper that likely are under them is in controlling the depth of the bait. Tommy Butler, a noted offshore skipper out of St. Petersburg, advises letting the lead hit bottom, then taking up three cranks or more of the spool to raise the bait into snapper country.

Snapper often bite rather lightly, but attempting to set the hook is usually unsuccessful. Best tactic, Butler advises, is simply to start cranking as fast as you can when you feel a nibble. Of course, Butler often uses electric reels when he's fishing the 200-foot contour, which makes fast cranking a whole lot easier.

Note that under a new federal law also going into effect Sunday, only non-stainless-steel circle hooks are to be used for offshore reef species. A de-hooker and a deflator must be on any boat fishing bottom. The rules are aimed at allowing more undersized snapper and grouper to be released uninjured.

The bag limit on red snapper is two per angler per day. The size limit 16 inches total length.

For more information on charters, contact Rochelle at (727) 528-1213.

COOKING IS A SNAP

There are no bad recipes for red snapper; it's delicious any way you choose to cook it.

One of my favorites is to mix crabmeat with a can of New England clam chowder, cover the fillet with the chowder, add a sprinkle of grated cheese, then bake until the fish is flaky.

It will definitely make you wish the open season could be changed to year-round.

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