Anyone Fishing?

[Fuzz]

Nice catch! You must be just a tad more tricky than a Sheepshead

[Eric1]

Man Browndog! I'd like to have a couple of those. Nice mess you caught!!

[Jeff]

Nice catch Browndog!! Jeff

[Browndog]

Went fishing again today. Tried a few different spots than we fished on Wednesday. Found a new place and caught some nice ones.

[Eric1]

Those convicts didn't stand a chance!

[Fuzz]

How big are those? I notice one looks twice as big as all the others.

[fallguy1000]

Tips on sheepshead? Where to catch em n hows a bit?

[Browndog]

The Speckled trout in the top left of the picture is 15” long. So that gives you an idea how big the rest of the fish are. The largest fish was the first one I caught that day. It is missing half of its tail. I’m guessing it is 6-8 lbs. Sheepshead are heavy for their size. Very bony heads and large, strong and sharp fin spines. Their teeth are made for crushing. They feed on barnacles, oysters, crabs and will eat shrimp too. Due to their diet they are mostly found around structure like dock pilings, fallen submerged trees, oyster reefs, rock rip rap, bridge pilings, ship wrecks and artificial reefs.

The best setup to use to catch a Sheepshead is a reel with very sensitive low stretch line on a rod with some backbone but a sensitive tip and use an egg sinker on the line with a swivel and flourocarbon leader of slightly lower breaking strength than the main line as hang ups are common and break offs occur frequently. I prefer a 3/0 octopus circle hook. For bait we use mainly fiddler crabs. Some people use shrimp, clams or oysters. But the softer bait is frequently stolen by other non target fish.

Around here the tide makes a difference too. You want to use a vertical slow jigging presentation and if the current is flowing too much then it is hard to fish that way. The fish are notoriously light biters. Sometimes you won’t feel a bite at all, the line will just move to the side or you’ll just feel a slight weight on the line and you must set the hook immediately. By the time you feel the bite your bait is usually gone.

It is one of my favorite fish to catch as it requires some finesse and concentration. Even then you will probably get one fish for every 5-10 baits stolen. Those new to it can get frustrated by the lack of hook ups. I enjoy the challenge.

The meat is a firm white flesh that stands up well to grilling, frying, broiling or baking and is popular for fish stews. The bones are very large and it is common around here to cook the rib bones and the backbones of medium to large fish even after they’ve been filleted due to the amount of meat on them and the ease in which the bones can be picked out.

As Eric pointed out, due to their black and white stripes they are often referred by the slang term “convicts” as their markings are reminiscent of the old prison uniform designs.

Even though they are around all year long, they are more likely to be sought in the late fall, winter and early spring when the fishing for other species tends to slow down.

[Jeff]

Great catch Browndog!!! Jeff

[cape man]

It is one of my favorite fish to catch as it requires some finesse and concentration. Even then you will probably get one fish for every 5-10 baits stolen. Those new to it can get frustrated by the lack of hook ups. I enjoy the challenge.

My father always said the trick was to set the hook just before they bite.