Permit at skyway????

[shot33gun9]

Nice, tastes just like a Pompano. Did you save the rib bones? Makes some cool necklaces

[fishsci]

Very nice. FYI, permit are not all that rare around here. There are big schools of them around some of the midshore artificial reefs during the summer. Several guides specialize catching them using smaller pass crabs. On a calm day, if you know how to look for them, the schools can be seen circling the reef as their sivery sides flash the sunlight. Back about 30 years ago and more, and before the net ban, there was a big fishery for them by the commercial netters out of Cortez. The netted them somewhere close to Passage Key by the thousands. Once a size limit for permit was established, the netters tried to convince DNR (forerunner of FWC) that what they were catching were not permit, but instead a different species. They said that they were Mexican pompano, but of course they were wrong. The net ban came around and the issue became moot.

Come to think of it, it is surprising that permit are not caught more frequently off of the piers. Probably it is because they are very wary and hard to fool with artificials like jigs. Back when I was in H.S. we used to make trips to the Keys to fish the bridges. You could see large schools of permit around the bridges, and you could cast a yellow jig toward them, and the entire school would follow it. Each fish would take turns going to the head of the school, and coming close to and examining the jig, then turm back to the school. The only time anyone ever hooked them was when they brought small live blue crabs onto the catwalk and cast the crab to the school using no leader and 20# or less mono line. Maybe if people would fish small crabs more at the Skyway, the might catch permit more frequently.

[shot33gun9]

I've caught some off the Terra Ceia bridge on mud crabs fishing for sheepshead

[stuckintherocks]

No time to write a full report but it was caught on a pass crab floated way out near the end on a balloon just to see what would happen hahaha I agree with your theory that more permit would be caught if more pass crabs were used

[stuckintherocks]

Y’all might be mad about this one… I sent her back to see another day. I eat grunts and sharks that permit sh*t is too classy for me hahaha

[shot33gun9]

Very disturbing...

[stuckintherocks]

Hahaha just kidding about them being too classy, that fish was right at 11 inches to the fork, I don’t know, it just didn’t feel right. Just wasn’t worth it for such a small amount of meat, and also I can’t deny the fact that I wanted some good karma for sending her back, maybe her 10lb big brother will come and find my pass crab next time.. Now that’s a picture I’ve never seen, the guy on skyway pier holding a Florida keys bridge size permit.

[tears143]

Jul 13, 2023 16:35:27 GMT -5 fishsci said:

Very nice. FYI, permit are not all that rare around here. There are big schools of them around some of the midshore artificial reefs during the summer. Several guides specialize catching them using smaller pass crabs. On a calm day, if you know how to look for them, the schools can be seen circling the reef as their sivery sides flash the sunlight. Back about 30 years ago and more, and before the net ban, there was a big fishery for them by the commercial netters out of Cortez. The netted them somewhere close to Passage Key by the thousands. Once a size limit for permit was established, the netters tried to convince DNR (forerunner of FWC) that what they were catching were not permit, but instead a different species. They said that they were Mexican pompano, but of course they were wrong. The net ban came around and the issue became moot.

Come to think of it, it is surprising that permit are not caught more frequently off of the piers. Probably it is because they are very wary and hard to fool with artificials like jigs. Back when I was in H.S. we used to make trips to the Keys to fish the bridges. You could see large schools of permit around the bridges, and you could cast a yellow jig toward them, and the entire school would follow it. Each fish would take turns going to the head of the school, and coming close to and examining the jig, then turm back to the school. The only time anyone ever hooked them was when they brought small live blue crabs onto the catwalk and cast the crab to the school using no leader and 20# or less mono line. Maybe if people would fish small crabs more at the Skyway, the might catch permit more frequently.

caught plenty of permit at skyway during summer on pompano jig. People that do catch them most of the time don't know if it's a permit or pompano. They usually just fish for pompano and it look just like them.

[fishtailz]

Wondering if you caught that Permit at night? I occasionally hang a lantern off a pier where I'm at after dark for shrimp and the pass crabs are plentiful floating out with the tide. None to be seen until the sun sets. Guess I"m wondering how you came about getting the crab? Permit is a cool looking fish. Would like to catch one myself. Just because.

[fishtailz]

Wondering if you caught that Permit at night? I occasionally hang a lantern off a pier where I'm at after dark for shrimp and the pass crabs are plentiful floating out with the tide. None to be seen until the sun sets. Guess I"m wondering how you came about getting the crab? Permit is a cool looking fish. Would like to catch one myself. Just because. I see now it was caught at 10 a.m.

[shot33gun9]

He said he caught it around 10am on a pass crab, but I suspect he used a slingshot with forward facing sonar attached. He also believes in Karma. Forget the lantern and get yourself a green light that can be submerged, Amazon has them. I have one I've never used

[fishtailz]

I have seen others with a green light and I noticed that they did not attract baitfish. I am more concerned about snook after dark than I am shrimp. The shrimp net is a way for me to net ballyhoo then I hook them through the eyes and drop it on the up-current side of the bridge above the lantern. Haven't had a problem getting shrimp either. Time before last about 150. Problem is they are getting smaller as summer progresses. Have hooked some giant snook with that technique. Had a guestimated 40 incher on and the guy behind me wanted to know if I wanted him to gaff it. He said just head for the truck. I passed. Those with the green light seemed to catch as many as we did.

[shot33gun9]

Not sold on lights for snook, unless it's a permanent light. I used a lantern for a few years, big snook would come up and swim around a bit but they would not touch a bait. The fish I caught were well away from the lantern, in the dark areas

[stuckintherocks]

Jul 14, 2023 14:52:10 GMT -5 fishtailz said:

Wondering if you caught that Permit at night? I occasionally hang a lantern off a pier where I'm at after dark for shrimp and the pass crabs are plentiful floating out with the tide. None to be seen until the sun sets. Guess I"m wondering how you came about getting the crab? Permit is a cool looking fish. Would like to catch one myself. Just because.

I caught the permit fishing the morning, after fishing and collecting bait all night. I use a cheap small foldable drop net to scoop up crabs and shrimp. I have a large tote that I use as a live well and spend the night collecting grunts pinfish pilchards crabs and shrimp that I use while I’m there. I was experimenting all night and morning with assorted floats and balloons and was drifting random baits over the rock piles with about a 9 or 10 foot 20lb leader, I was really just trying to stumble my bait over a large mangrove snappers head, preferably 15in and up, at night I caught a smaller porgy, two snapper around 11 inches and a big grunt on large shrimp. The method only works when the tide is moving slow, it was outgoing tide Tuesday morning but with wind against tide, I couldn’t get any small baitfish and all I had left was pass crabs so I floated one out hoping a tarpon wouldn’t eat it, for a fish it’s size it fought like a champ on my 4000 reel and was ripping out drag. I actually thought it was going to be a medium sized cobia. Still a really cool experience and definitely something I’m gonna try more often

[stuckintherocks]

Jul 14, 2023 15:46:31 GMT -5 shot33gun9 said:

He said he caught it around 10am on a pass crab, but I suspect he used a slingshot with forward facing sonar attached. He also believes in Karma. Forget the lantern and get yourself a green light that can be submerged, Amazon has them. I have one I've never used

Hahaha I’m a believer of whatever the hells gonna catch me sum more fish !! I tried the Amazon light, took it off when it caught on fire. Don’t buy the cheap one

[shot33gun9]

Caught on fire....underwater right?

[stuckintherocks]

Jul 14, 2023 21:10:31 GMT -5 shot33gun9 said:

Caught on fire....underwater right?

Hahaha the cables connected to the battery started smoking, I didn’t need to see the actual fire to know it was time to turn them off

[fishsci]

Jul 14, 2023 7:53:49 GMT -5 tears143 said:

Jul 13, 2023 16:35:27 GMT -5 fishsci said:

Very nice. FYI, permit are not all that rare around here. There are big schools of them around some of the midshore artificial reefs during the summer. Several guides specialize catching them using smaller pass crabs. On a calm day, if you know how to look for them, the schools can be seen circling the reef as their sivery sides flash the sunlight. Back about 30 years ago and more, and before the net ban, there was a big fishery for them by the commercial netters out of Cortez. The netted them somewhere close to Passage Key by the thousands. Once a size limit for permit was established, the netters tried to convince DNR (forerunner of FWC) that what they were catching were not permit, but instead a different species. They said that they were Mexican pompano, but of course they were wrong. The net ban came around and the issue became moot.

Come to think of it, it is surprising that permit are not caught more frequently off of the piers. Probably it is because they are very wary and hard to fool with artificials like jigs. Back when I was in H.S. we used to make trips to the Keys to fish the bridges. You could see large schools of permit around the bridges, and you could cast a yellow jig toward them, and the entire school would follow it. Each fish would take turns going to the head of the school, and coming close to and examining the jig, then turm back to the school. The only time anyone ever hooked them was when they brought small live blue crabs onto the catwalk and cast the crab to the school using no leader and 20# or less mono line. Maybe if people would fish small crabs more at the Skyway, the might catch permit more frequently.

caught plenty of permit at skyway during summer on pompano jig. People that do catch them most of the time don't know if it's a permit or pompano. They usually just fish for pompano and it look just like them.

Yes, small permit are very commonly caught, particularly by those fishing in the surf.  Like you say, many people just think that they are pompano.  The small ones are not wary, and are easily caught on shrimp, sand fleas or even jigs.  My comments about them above were posted before we found out that the permit caught on the Skyway was only about 11".  I, like a lot of others, thought that it might have been a bigger fish.

[tears143]

Jul 14, 2023 20:24:21 GMT -5 stuckintherocks said:

I was experimenting all night and morning with assorted floats and balloons and was drifting random baits over the rock piles with about a 9 or 10 foot 20lb leader, I was really just trying to stumble my bait over a large mangrove snappers head, preferably 15in and up, at night I caught a smaller porgy, two snapper around 11 inches and a big grunt on large shrimp.

Keep trying, the bigger snappers are there. I got an 15-16" yesterday out on the rockpile.

[stuckintherocks]

Jul 15, 2023 12:31:12 GMT -5 tears143 said:

Jul 14, 2023 20:24:21 GMT -5 stuckintherocks said:

I was experimenting all night and morning with assorted floats and balloons and was drifting random baits over the rock piles with about a 9 or 10 foot 20lb leader, I was really just trying to stumble my bait over a large mangrove snappers head, preferably 15in and up, at night I caught a smaller porgy, two snapper around 11 inches and a big grunt on large shrimp.

Keep trying, the bigger snappers are there. I got an 15-16" yesterday out on the rockpile.

Appreciate it, that is real good to know ! I know they ain’t around for too long gotta get ‘em while we can.

[stuckintherocks]

Yea permit was 11 maybe 12” to the fork at the very most, it wasn’t tiny but I had already released the two small porgys and the smaller mangroves, in hope of catching a couple of larger fish instead of a bunch of smaller ones. At that point I was leaving and a smaller permit was a cool catch and not enough meat to make it worth keeping.

[stuckintherocks]

these are the porgys I was catching the other night using the balloon method. They appear different than the one I caught a couple weeks ago as the other one has distinct black splotches all over it which made me think it was a jolt head.. didn’t get a pic of that one and don’t know much about these species 

[carlf]

Them porgies are good eats, we make sashimi with them.
I'm not great at porgie ID other than red porgies, pinfish and sheepshead. We used to catch big ones (2-4 pounds) on hardbottom 20 miles off Pensacola. Hard fighting and tasty. Not sure if they were jolthead or whitebone.