FishRook
Brian Summerlin of Princess Anne is now recognized by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources for a new state fishing record in the Chesapeake Bay Division for sheepshead (Archosargus probatocephalus).
He caught the 16.6-pound fish Sunday, Sept. 17 in Tangier Sound off Crisfield in about 15 feet of water. Mr. Summerlin was targeting sheepshead using soft crab rigged on a sliding sinker “fishfinder rig” with an 8/0 circle hook, and a spinning rod with 60-pound braid and a 60-pound fluorocarbon leader.
He had been catching a mix of black drum, striped bass, bluefish and other species before encountering the eventual record-breaker.
“I thought it was a black drum at first, due to the way the fish was fighting with some big head shakes, but then I saw it was a very large sheepshead as it surfaced near the boat,” Summerlin said. After landing the fish, he checked the fish in for preliminary weight and photographs at Sea Hawk Sports…
