As local water temperatures fluctuate between seasons in the spring and fall, savvy anglers know to start looking for cobia in area waters.
Often mistaken for sharks whose shapes and coloration they resemble, cobia are long and streamlined with a broad, flattened head. Their upper body is brown with a dark lateral line that extends through the eye to the tail. The brown fades to white on the belly.
Cobia range up to 6 feet in length and can weigh more than 100 pounds. While most anglers target cobia in the Gulf, cobia range widely throughout local bays as well, particularly near local passes. They spawn in the spring and early summer and feed on crabs, small fish and squid.
Several changes to the management of cobia in state waters in the Gulf of Mexico went into effect Feb. 1. These changes were approved at the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) meeting last December.
The changes strive to enhance sustainable management of this fishery and were developed in coordination with anglers, charter captains and the Coastal Conservation Association, which had expressed concern about the fishery. The changes will apply to all state waters north of the Monroe-Collier county line. Those changes include:
- Making the recreational and commercial bag limits for cobia in Gulf state waters the same by reducing the commercial limit from two to one fish per person.
- Reducing the recreational and commercial vessel limit in Gulf state waters from six to two cobia per vessel, per day. The 33-inch minimum size limit changed to 36-inch fork measurement in March.
Cobia have a way of surprising anglers, so it’s wise to have a rig ready should you encounter one.
Fly anglers who target cobia opt for at least a 10-weight outfit, although it’s possible to land smaller cobia on lighter outfits. A favorite fly is a black bunny tied to resemble a small eel, one of their favorite foods. Anglers fishing conventional tackle most often use live baitfish and live crabs, another of their favorite foods. Cobia will also hit a variety of plugs and lures that imitate baitfish.
This is the beginning of tarpon season and anglers targeting tarpon should be on the alert for cruising cobia. Last week AMI Outfitters owner Steve Traves anchored his boat and jumped on my bow (following social distancing guidelines) on a sand bar bordering Tampa Bay. It wasn’t long before I spotted a cruising stingray with a nice cobia riding his back. Cobia use rays as camouflage darting off them to eat prey that rays spook. After positioning the boat ahead of the ray, Traves made a cast that landed just in front of the ray. He then stripped it to intercept the two fish and the cobia rushed over and ate the fly. Unfortunately, the cobia came straight at the boat and Traves was unable to set the hook.
Later that day I was anchored up along another edge when a manatee came cruising down the bar with a 30-pound plus cobia “glued” to his back. I made a cast to intercept the cobia but hooked the manatee instead. Fortunately, I was able to pull my anchor and get in front of the manatee, freeing my fly. I was able to get several casts to the cobia but this one wasn’t interested in eating.
Captain Justin Moore has been seeing cobia while tarpon fishing and advises anglers to pay attention to any floating objects like flotsam and buoys as well as structure including markers and artificial reefs. Cobia are a worthy adversary for local anglers. They can show unexpectedly and be hard to target but put up a terrific battle and the smaller ones make great table fare.
