Though sheepshead don’t eat flies readily, there are regions where fly fishers sight fish them regularly with a modicum of success.
Most shrimp and crab patterns fit the bill. My favorites include the Crazy Charlie and Dorsy’s Kwan Fly, a shrimp-crab attractor pattern that reminds one of the Merkin, a top permit pattern. These should be tied on No. 4 or No. 6 hooks. In many regions, fly fishers do fairly well with small, black Clouser Minnows, too. Generally, black or copper-colored flies are tops, though on occasion, pink and tan flies do well. Sheepshead tend to refuse bright-colored flies, but have been taken on chartreuse when the light was low.
As for fly presentation, a soft, gentle delivery is a must, and your retrieve should be slow enough to keep your fly dragging bottom. Because sheepshead eat small crustaceans, bonefish flies that mimic shrimp or crabs work best. Also, most flies in this genre ride hook up, so they don’t snag as much over shell or grass bottom.
Whenever possible, tie your sheepshead flies on wire hooks rather than forged hooks. Forged hooks tend to be brittle and ’heads have no problem breaking a hook with their powerful jaws and crushers. Also, a pair of good hemostats is best for unhooking your fish. I know a guy who loves to fish for sheepshead who, while attempting to get his fly back, had a sizable chunk of flesh taken off the end of his thumb by a fish. But I won’t name any names.
Though sight fishing normally demands that you cast as soon as you comfortably can once you spot a fish, try to hold out for a shot that allows you to retrieve your fly along a path that has little or no shell or grass. Once the fly hits the water, one of two things will happen: the fish will either spook or make a mad dash for the fly. If the fish spooks, well, that’s just sheepshead sight fishing for you.
Other Sight-Fishing Hotspots
Though sheepshead don’t eat flies readily, there are regions where fly fishers sight fish them regularly with a modicum of success. Northeast Florida fly fishers stalk tailing sheepshead that mix in with redfish during big autumn tides over spartina grassflats bordering the Intracoastal Waterway between Amelia Island and St. Augustine. Tailing sheepshead are obviously feeding, so that represents your best chance of hooking up. Fly fishers also report hooking up around shallow oyster bars in the Tampa Bay region, the Ten Thousand Islands, and in Florida Bay near Flamingo, where mullet create muds that attract the fish, and cloud the water enough to make them less spooky.
A sheepshead has very sharp, square incisor teeth, just like a sheep (hence the name) with which it scrapes barnacles from any surface, and chews prey into small pieces. They are notorious bait-stealers. You’ve probably heard the old sheepshead adage, “set the hook just before they bite.” That’s an exaggeration, but they are subtle nibblers, and that’s why it can be difficult to feel them take a fly. Florida fly fishers who catch both bonefish and sheepshead report that the bites are similar. Both species will surge forward and stop when they take a moving fly, or they will pin a stationary fly to the bottom before taking it in. Watch the fish for this behavior—if it stops while tracking, don’t hesitate to react. The fish probably has it. By making a long, slow strip, you will feel the line begin to get tight. Once this occurs, I make a slow, steady, but powerful side-sweep of the rod to set the hook. The bend created should torque deep into the butt section, where the power is, and have no bend in the upper half of the rod. Strip strikes will work, but the technique I described above has proven more effective for me.
Vivid black and white bars stand out even in stained water.
Flats sheepshead are not known for blazing runs, and rarely exceed six pounds. Given their moderate size and the small flies that are best for them, fish with a 6-weight outfit. A floating fly line with a 9- to 12-foot fluorocarbon leader works most of the time, but occasionally I choose to cast a clear sink-tip line in deeper water. Fluorocarbon provides the abrasion resistance needed when fishing around oyster shell and also helps in the stealth department.
