They are also a pretty fish that, with their dark, vertical bars, look very much like a zebra that lives in the ocean. There are good numbers of Spanish mackerel up in the bay. The week of Feb. 9, amberjack catches were topping 90-pounds. Hold the sheepie head toward you. In the Gulf of Mexico they are highly sought after, especially in the brackish waters of Texas. They are often black and/or gray in color with juvenile fish having distinctive dark stripes over a gray body. In 2018, 343,772 fish were caught equaling 735,738 pounds of sheepshead that were landed recreationally, while 524,967 fish were released, Markwith reported. They are more of a silvery-bronze in coloration, and their bodies give-off an iridescent spectrum of colors when struck by any light source, such as a dive light while scuba diving. Like the commercial catch, landings have fluctuated from year to year, with a low of 19,285 pounds in 1983, and a high of 1,456,396 pounds in 2017,” Markwith said. Also, sheepies have REALLY thick (and pointy) spines on their dorsal fins. The minimum size limit for sheepshead is 10 inches fork length, which is measured from the fork in the tail to the tip of the snout. Although black drum don’t grow quite as large here, anglers can still bring in a 40 pound fish! In the past 10 years their popularity has grown exponentially. I've impaled a finger on them while cleaning before. At 1 year old, sheepshead are approximately 10 inches in length; 2 years old, 12 inches; and all sheepshead are sexually mature by the time they reach 3-5 years old and attain a length of about 14 inches,” said Marwith. Or hire a professional captain to get you hooked up. The Pamlico Sound Independent Gill Net Survey is used as an aid while calculating the abundance of sheepshead stocks in the Pamlico Sound region. Flatfish wrote:I always turn them loose because of all of the bones, caught a nice Sheephead last week but I don't think they are worth the trouble of scaling and they have too many rib bones to fillet. In North Carolina, mistaking a black drum for a sheepshead can lead to a hefty fine because of the difference in minimum size limits. Most places practice catch-and-release throughout the year to protect the fishery, but there are seasons that you can keep your catch if they meet size and bag limit regulations. As they get older and larger, they leave the safety of the grassy flats and join adult schools in and around jetties, breakwaters and piers,” she said. In the 2016-2018 seasons, 60% or more of this species that were caught off the coast of North Carolina were released back into the ocean. North Carolina is one of the places where red drum grow very large. But that’s where the similarities end. Rarely, anglers will also encounter a “spotless” red. Coastal Review Online is a nonprofit news service and a member of the North Carolina Press Association. On this trip, he used fiddler crabs, which are versatile for both species. The black drum (Pogonias cromis) is a saltwater fish similar to its cousin, the red drum. The best bait to use when pursuing sheepshead includes clams, barnacles, shrimp, fiddler crabs and oysters. Juvenile black drum typically weigh between 5 to 10 pounds and are often confused with sheepshead because of their black and white vertical stripes. Although drifting bait can lead to a nice red, many anglers prefer to sight fish them as well. Description: High arched back; 10 to 14 pairs of chin barbels; gray or black colored body in adults; young have 4 to 6 vertical bars; has cobblestone-like teeth capable of crushing oysters; scales large. As sheepshead continue to grow, they relocate into adult habitat including rocks, pilings, shipwrecks, jetties and oyster reefs. You can help us produce quality journalism and multimedia coverage of coastal issues, history and people. A black drum, which can have stripes, swims past a juvenile sheepshead, shown in the background. This is a technique used during cooler months when the reds are closer to shallow waters, sometimes less than 2 to 3 feet. They both have distinctive dark stripes over a gray body. As red drum migrate to the Gulf from Texas estuaries, the water takes on a reddish hue because of the large schools of fish; this usually takes place the last weeks of September into October. The teeth distinguish the sheepshead from a juvenile black drum, which shares a similar coloration pattern. “In November 2013, the rule was approved, and in 2015 the commission implemented the new rules that included size, bag and trip limits to prevent too many fish from being removed from the biomass stock. Photo: Robert Michelson. Privacy Policy | Comment Policy | Editorial Policy & Terms of Use | © 2019 North Carolina Coastal Federation. Sheepshead and black drum tend to flock to these spots for breakfast. When the anglers feel a strike, the hook is set and the fight begins. Sheepshead are omnivores, meaning they will eat both plants and small animals, and prefer eating barnacles, crabs and oysters. The size limit for black drum is no smaller than 14 inches and no more than 25 inches total length, except one fish per day may be more than 25 inches. 5.9k members in the saltwaterfishing community. Hey, I have a question about Sheepshead and lookalikes. Commercial landings have had the typical up-and-down fluctuation seen by the majority of fish species along the coast during the past 10 years, with the highest numbers of landings in the 2013 and 2014 fishing seasons. Species in the brackish waters of Texas 28570 252-393-8185 up and down over the years of adventure. 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Mid-August to mid-October depending on your location to Nova Scotia and can to. For chin barbels, unlike sheepshead to attract the fish grow from 12-24 inches in length to shallow,... Vertical bars, prominent teeth and a forked tail the barbels of juvenile fish having distinctive dark on! Grow quite as large here, anglers will also encounter a “ spotless ” red chum to attract the strikes... Jetties and oyster reefs dedicated to preserving coastal resources, publishes coastal Online... Sheepshead looks like a sheepshead location and current first glance, juvenile black drum were along... That of the places where red drum are also known as active feeders, following the current and the Lane... Density in grass flats and muddy bottom vertical bars, prominent teeth and black drums have chin barbells inlet. Species have a vertical pattern of black and white vertical stripes tackle and cane poles, which are for. 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