Nature Coast

The reef raiders

Artificial structures around the region attract a variety of fish.

By DAVID A. BROWN, Times Corrrespondent
Published December 29, 2007

During the past couple of decades, Pasco and Hernando counties have allowed tons of discarded items to be dumped off their coastlines. But don't be alarmed. We're not talking trash. Rather, this eclectic assemblage had to pass muster in the environmentally friendly category. We're talking artificial reefs - piles, mounds and smatterings of concrete, metal and assorted hard items designed to enhance and often create habitat for marine creatures.

In years past, reefs were constructed with loosely piled items of questionable merit - many of which tumbled away with storms.

But the Army Corps of Engineers and Florida Department of Environmental Protection now closely scrutinize reef projects.

The preference for contemporary reefs is "heavy, stable, durable and nonpolluting" items. Concrete culverts, retired army tanks (purged of fluids), bridge rubble and steel barges fit that need.

How it works

Successful reefs avoid adverse environmental impacts and stay long enough to attract marine life.

Some creatures come for shelter, some for food. All contribute to a big-picture attraction that appeals to anglers and divers.

The show starts with tiny organisms that grow along the structure.

Small fish soon gather to feed on the clinging buffet and then increasingly larger predators get wise to the deal. Before long, the reef showcases an entire food chain of resident fish and those just window shopping.

Common bottom dwellers include gag grouper, black sea bass, porgies, grunts and snapper (mangrove, vermillion and lane). Sharks, cobia, bluefish, Spanish mackerel, kingfish and permit commonly patrol the mid to upper sections of the water column.

Weather patterns and gulf water temperature will shuffle the mix seasonally. Grouper will move deeper during the extremes of summer and winter.

But as long as the reef harbors schools of baitfish, predators of some kind will visit.

Reef tactics

Dropping live pinfish or frozen sardines on fish-finder rigs probably accounts for the majority of reef fishing effort. This works well for snapper, grouper, porgies and sea bass.

Trolling big-lipped diving plugs will tempt the grouper. In fact, experienced reef anglers will troll a structure to determine if its mood merits anchoring.

If you're just out to bend a fishing rod, anchor uptide of a reef structure, hang a chum block from a spring cleat and toss out a few chunks of frozen sardine every couple of minutes.

A solid chumming effort is likely to accumulate Spanish mackerel, kingfish, bonita, sharks, cobia and bluefish.

Free-line a couple of live pinfish, blue runners or shrimp and suspend a few more under floats.

During this activity, have one of the crew members fan cast surrounding waters with a white bucktail jig or a swimbait.

You might find a pod of roaming fish this way. A noisy topwater plug or chug bait can flip the switch when feeding aggression runs high.

Chumming a wad of fish over the reef presents an excellent fly rod opportunity. This is particularly advantageous for novice casters because distance and accuracy are far less critical than in most inshore scenarios.

If you can lay a Clouser or glass minnow pattern 20 feet behind the boat, you'll catch something.

If you're really on the ball, work a gold-hook "sabiki" rig over the reef structure for a twofold benefit. First, grabbing fresh live bait is always a plus. And eyeballing local forage tells you what the main predators are used to eating.

Match the hatch by rigging these fresh baits or use them as a reference for selecting the appropriate size and color of artificials.

Where reefs are

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission lists site details (materials, depth, relief) and navigational coordinates for all permitted reefs constructed off Pasco and Hernando counties. Visit myfwc.com/marine/ar/reef_locator.asp. Most local charts include reef site information.

Privately constructed reefs exist throughout the gulf, but given the clandestine strategy inherent to such projects, many people aren't keen to share their locations.

When navigating to reef sites, remember that their marking buoys are typically set in the center of the permitted site. This does not necessarily indicate the prime fishing spot - only the midpoint.

Most artificial reef sites have evolved through multiple rounds of materials deployment, each one spaced appropriately for maximum site expansion. Therefore, you might find a good bite 100 yards or more from the buoy.

More importantly, savvy anglers know that avoiding the most obvious spots often yields better results.

[Last modified December 28, 2007, 21:11:26]