Some hefty sheepies

Capt. Thom Smith with a roughly 5-pound sheepshead

Anglers who crave that delicious white meat of the sheepshead have anxiously waited for the convict fish to begin piling up in thick numbers aroud pilings.

But the frenzy has yet to happen.

Good news though: Some big 'uns are here.

On Monday, I fished with Capt. Thom Smith and Capt. Zach Zacharias, and in north Sarasota Bay, Smith sunk a hook into what we all thought was a redfish based on its bullish runs.

Then, a surprise, as we saw a hefty, zebra-striped sheepy break the surface. At about five pounds, it was the largest sheepshead Zacharias had seen this winter.

There were more good-sized sheepshead, but none as big as Smith's.

"Sheep-herding" is in its early stages around such docks, and reportedly anglers have had success at Anna Maria City Pier and Rod and Reel Pier as well. Moreover, many of the sheepshead are in an early spawn, as was evident by the female's bellies full of roe.

It's a start.