Captiva Fishing, Sheepshead!

Sheepshead, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing, Sanibel Island, Monday, November 21, 2016.
Sheepshead, Windy. Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing, Sanibel Island, Friday, December 8, 2017, [File Photo- Monday, November 21, 2016].
Sheepshead, Windy. Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing, Sanibel Island, Friday, December 8, 2017, [File Photo- Monday, November 21, 2016].

Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing, December 8, 2017: Sheepshead!

CaptivaRentals.org: Avoid VRBO Fees. Rent Directly From Local Homeowners.Captiva Fishing Report, Friday, December 8: Sheepshead, Structure, Catch & Release; Red Tide Report (Caloosahatchee freshwater runoff may be lessening a bit; some Red Tide but it has broken up and largely dispersed); more fishing reports from other areas and Captains below.

Friday, December 8:  Sheepshead, In The Passes & On The Docks; Pompano & Bluefish schools running inshore, Snook in the passes, Seatrout on grass flats, Redfish on oyster bars, and Grouper on the structure.

Please also visit the SanibelFort MyersFlorida Fishing Report and Cuban Fishing sites.  Better water moving north of Sanibel up through Captiva & North Captiva.

Please click here to Book A Charter or call 239-472-8658 and here for Live Sanibel Traffic Cams.

Sheepshead, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing & Fort Myers Fishing Charters & Guide Service, Friday, December 8, 2017, [File Photo - 2-4-15].
Sheepshead, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing & Fort Myers Fishing Charters & Guide Service, Friday, December 8, 2017, [File Photo – 2-4-15].
Archosargus probatocephalus, the sheepshead, is a marine fish that grows to 76 cm (30 in), but commonly reaches 30 to 50 cm (10 to 20 in). It is deep and compressed in body shape, with five or six dark bars on the side of the body over a gray background. It has sharp dorsal spines. Its diet consists of oystersclams, and other bivalves, and barnaclesfiddler crabs, and other crustaceans.[1] It has a hard mouth, with several rows of stubby teeth – the frontal ones roughly resembling human teeth – which help crush the shells of prey.[2]

Sheepshead, Inshore, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing, Tuesday, March 15, 2016 ~ #Sanibel #Captiva.
Sheepshead, Inshore, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing, Tuesday, March 15, 2016 ~ #Sanibel #Captiva.

The sheepshead is found in coastal waters along the western Atlantic, from Nova Scotia to Brazil, but the greatest concentration is around southwest Florida.[3] Although the Sheepshead Bay section of Brooklyn, in New York City, was named after the fish,[4] it is now rarely found that far north.

Sheepshead, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing, Wednesday, 3-2-16 ~ #Sanibel #Captiva.
Sheepshead, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing, Wednesday, 3-2-16 ~ #Sanibel #Captiva.

As sheepshead feed on bivalves and crustaceans,[1] successful baits include shrimpsand fleas (mole crabs), clams, fiddler crabs, and mussels.[5] Sheepshead have a knack for stealing bait, so a small hook is necessary.[5]Locating sheepshead with a boat is not difficult: Fishermen look for rocky bottoms or places with obstructions, jetties, and the pilings of bridges and piers.[5] The average weight of a sheepshead is 1.4 to 1.8 kg (3 to 4 lb), but some individuals reach the range of 4.5 to 6.8 kg (10 to 15 lb).[5] Please see more information here.

Sheepshead, 1-6-15, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing & Fort Myers Fishing Charters & Guide Service.
Sheepshead, 1-6-15, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing & Fort Myers Fishing Charters & Guide Service.

“Florida Regulations: 

Regulations Gulf State Waters Atlantic State Waters
Size Limit 12”
Daily Bag Limit 15 per person

 

Gear Requirements:

  • Legal Gear: hook and line, cast net, seine, spear or gig
  • Illegal Gear: Harvest prohibited by or with the use of any multiple hook in conjunction with live or dead natural bait; Snatching prohibited

    Sheepshead, 11-28-14, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing & Fort Myers Fishing Charters & Guide Service.
    Sheepshead, 11-28-14, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing & Fort Myers Fishing Charters & Guide Service.

State Waters Harvest Seasons

Habitat and Fishing Tips:  Sheepshead are commonly found in brackish water river mouths, bays, estuaries, and tidal creeks and especially near oyster bars, buoys, channel markers, piers and bridge piles where food is plentiful. Sheepshead feed primarily on crustaceans, mollusks, barnacles and small fish.

Sheepshead caught offshore of Captiva, Sanibel & Captiva Islands & Fort Myers Charters & Fishing Guide Service.
Sheepshead caught offshore of Captiva, Sanibel & Captiva Islands & Fort Myers Charters & Fishing Guide Service.

Anglers typically use light to medium weight spinning tackle with shrimp, sand fleas or small crabs as bait. Using their specially adapted (human-like) incisors and crushing molars, sheepshead can be difficult to hook and have an uncanny ability to clean a hook without you knowing anything happened.

Tim with his Sheepshead on Sanibel & Captiva charters!

When targeting sheepshead, it is very important to keep your line tight and be ready for the bite because you often get one, and only one, chance to set the hook. The food quality of sheepshead is very good, and they are one of the only fish that can smile back at you during the picture!

Huge Sheepshead caught offshore of Captiva on Sanibel & Captiva charters!
Huge Sheepshead caught offshore of Captiva on Sanibel & Captiva charters!

Can oysters and barnacles be used as bait or chum for sheepshead  Oysters and barnacles are very, very different when it comes to regulations.

Oysters have closed seasons, bag limits, size limits and can only be legally harvested in specific shellfish harvesting areas that are classified as “approved” or “conditionally approved” and in the “open” status. The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Division of Aquaculture External Website manages these shellfish harvesting areas.

Sheepshead caught offshore on Sanibel on Sanibel & Captiva charters!
Sheepshead caught offshore on Sanibel on Sanibel & Captiva charters!

Barnacles, on the other hand, do not have size limits or specified bag limits, which means that you can harvest up to 100 pounds per person per day with a recreational saltwater fishing license and you can use them to chum sheepshead. You can also simply scrape them off bridge piles and allow them to sink and attract sheepshead. Do not scrape barnacles from private docks or other private structures without permission of the property owner.

Sheepshead, 12-5-14, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing & Fort Myers Fishing Charters & Guide Service.
Sheepshead, 12-5-14, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing & Fort Myers Fishing Charters & Guide Service.

State Record:  15 lb 2 oz, caught near Homosassa.”  Please see more information here.

Please click here to Book A Charter or call 239-472-8658 and here for Live Sanibel Traffic Cams.  Redfish, Click here for College Of Fishing Hats & Apparel.

We’re located in Castaways Marina, Santiva, Sanibel Island, just before the Blind Pass bridge to Captiva Island.

Sheepshead, Blind Pass, 11-23-14, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing & Fort Myers Fishing Charters & Guide Service.
Sheepshead, Blind Pass, 11-23-14, Sanibel Fishing & Captiva Fishing & Fort Myers Fishing Charters & Guide Service.

After a fierce storm, Turner Beach, the beach adjoining the Pass, is frequently covered with a bounty of shells from Olives to Fighting Whelks to the more common Conchs. The fishing is also renowned for sharks in the summer, tailing redfish on the bayside flats and snook under and off the Blind Pass bridge. Because Turner Beach faces Westward, the sunsets are spectacular and a popular viewing point for residents and visitors alike.

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Fair winds and following seas,

Captain Joey Burnsed ~ please click calendar at the upper left or call 239-472-8658 to book a Sanibel & Captiva Islands, Boca Grande or Fort Myers fishing guide trip or shelling charter.

Two Sheepshead caught in Blind Pass, Sanibel & Captiva Islands & Fort Myers Charters & Fishing Guide Service.
Two Sheepshead caught in Blind Pass, Sanibel & Captiva Islands & Fort Myers Charters & Fishing Guide Service.