This time of year, a big bonus for anglers fishing around the rigs are the cobia (ling) that are suckers for structure in Gulf waters and can often be found hanging around oil platforms, stand pipes, jetties and buoys.
In STAR they can earn you big prizes!
One of the best tactics for locating ling around structure is to rev up the motors take a paddle and pound the water’s surface to get the attention of the fish. The first time I saw this done I thought the guy doing it was crazy. I had always been taught to be quiet in the boat and to avoid spooking the fish. But when I saw a huge ling rise up to the surface I was convinced that the technique was for real.
If you would like to catch ling try the standard summer fishing protocol: a handful of cut pogeys thrown overboard, and live crab or fresh cut bait hanging from circle hooks.
The ling themselves are fascinating creatures to study. Their moves have baffled the scientific and angling communities but recent developments give incite that can help anglers catch more of them.
Out of several hundred tagged in the northern Gulf, 55 were recaptured the next year and 12 of them were caught in the exact same spot where they were initially caught. That means the big ling you just never could get to cooperate last summer might bite this year.
If you haven’t scored on a big one go back to the rig you saw one at last yaer.
It might be there and be hungrier this time!
Chester Moore