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A mutton that tops 10 pounds is a brawler, easily capable of gaining the safety of razor-sharp structure if you don't play your cards right. And a trophy 20-pounder--well, that's the kind of fish that takes some persuasion.

Dinner-size mutton snapper, like this one, inhabit wrecks just off Miami Beach.

The pilchard probably tops the list of mutton snapper baits. You can buy these by the dozen at bait shops or you can catch your own. If you choose the latter, keep in mind that the superior baits are the larger, oceanside pilchards and not the little fellas generally found over inshore grassbeds.One way to get at the choice baits is to anchor over shallow nearshore patch reefs. Let a block of frozen chum thaw in a mesh bag tied at the stern--the tiny tidbits of oily paste will attract schools of pilchards within sabiki or castnet range. The early bird gets the worm here, as predawn hours are best for raising light-sensitive sardines.

Another approach is to work buoys, pilings and ledges around Government Cut, Haulover and other inlets. You might spot a pelican working, but the best way to locate baits in the fast-moving, deep water is to watch the depthfinder and probe suspicious markings with a sabiki or gold hook rig. The stuff that pilchards eat--tiny copepods and other planktonic life--is basically at the mercy of currents, so on an outgoing tide you'll find them on the outside and vice versa for the incoming.

There are many ways to hook pilchards, although Forgione has developed his own specialty. For starters, he ties on the hook with a 1/4-inch loop. "It allows the bait to swim freely," he explained, which seemed like a good idea considering his next move.

The skipper withdrew a hearty, palm-size pilchard from his livewell and threaded the livebait hook through the fish's vent and out near its pectoral fin.

"A mutton snapper eats a pilchard headfirst, and having the hookpoint aimed toward the rear is extremely important," he said. "The bait stays lively, and I hardly ever miss a bite." If pilchards aren't available, try a live pinfish. Lately Biscayne Bay has been swarming with these prickly little porgies, and they're quick to crowd about any kind of chum over grassbeds. A small hook and piece of shrimp does the trick, although a castnet will fill the well in less time. For deployment, hook these baits through the lips.

Another excellent live bait is a small live ballyhoo, which you can chum up over patch reefs and catch with a small, longshank hook and a piece of shrimp or squid under a little float.

Dead baits work, too, and folks have dreamed up some pretty interesting rigs over the years. The butterfly ballyhoo plug is elevated to the status of high art by many skippers, but there are numerous acceptable ways to dress up ballyhoo. The basic idea is to rig a headless, tailless ballyhoo (the "plug") with one or two hooks embedded in the flesh. You can also pin a whole ballyhoo to a deep-jig, although you'll need a pretty hefty jig if you plan to work it at anchor. Lots of muttons fall for pieces of dead mullet and herring, too, but when the chips are on the table, I'd like to be holding a live pilchard in my hand.

While you're soaking deep baits, be sure to put out a flatline bait and, if the wind allows, a kite bait to tempt the oversize kingfish that prowl the reefs in spring. As insurance against toothy jaws, use about eight inches of No. 2 or 3 single-strand wire attached to a 40-pound mono leader with an Albright knot or a small black swivel. A small, sharp, offset livebait hook means the fish generally stick themselves on the strike.Your primo mutton bait also happens to be a dandy kingfish pleaser. Hook that big pilchard through the back for use under a kite, and through the nostrils or belly for the flatlines. We found smaller kings thick on that wreck off Haulover, and once the mutton bite slowed we decided to pay them some attention. Bob Hassell pitched over a live pilchard on an 8-pound spinning outfit, which was promptly inhaled by a sizable king that set for the horizon like a scalded cat. After a 5-minute, drag-burning tug-o-war, Forgione gaffed a fish that weighed in at 12 pounds--a fine light-tackle catch, and reminder not to neglect the surface while you're probing the depths for muttons this spring.

Anchor Smarts

Anchoring in deep water requires a few specialized tactics. For starters, manually pulling up an anchor in 100 feet of water puts the strain on anyone's arms and back. A buoy with a sliding ring allows the boat to do the work. Simply clip the ring to your line and motor away from the wreck. The line slides through the ring, and the buoy supports the vertical load as the boat pulls the anchor to the surface.There's also the problem of fouling your anchor on the wreck or nearby rubble. Forgione uses a breakaway system that makes it easy to dislodge a Danforth anchor in the event of a hang up. First, drill a 1/4-inch hole in one of the rectangular surfaces on the crown of the anchor. Shackle your chain to this new hole and secure the chain to the top of the shaft with a piece of 80- to 100-pound-test monofilament (see diagram). The anchor holds solid, but when you're stuck, you can motor upcurrent, reversing the direction of pull, which breaks the monofilament and pulls the anchor out backwards.

Mutton Wrecks

Generally, wrecks and reefs in the 80- to 120-foot range off South Florida are productive spots for muttons during the spring spawn, but deeper and shallower sites are worth checking, too. Luckily, many good loran numbers are available, and latitude and longitude coordinates continue to be added to lists of our public wrecks. Ken Banks, with the Broward County Department of Natural Resources, has compiled a very good list that you can obtain free of charge by calling (954) 519-1230. The Dade County Artificial Reef Program is slowly switching to the more reliable GPS system. Contact them at (305) 372-6699 for an updated list of reefs.

Regs and Records

Mutton snapper stocks seem to be doing well now that fish traps are banned from South Atlantic waters, and sensible size and bag limits should ensure a bountiful recreational fishery. Minimum size is 16 inches, with a daily bag limit of 10 fish per person. Don't forget that means an aggregate bag of 10 snapper of any species.

The current International Game Fish Association all-tackle world record for mutton snapper is a 28-pound, 5-ounce fish taken by Bennie Kilgore on September 4, 1993. Kilgore caught the fish from a long-range partyboat over the Middle Grounds in the Gulf of Mexico.

Most anglers agree that a mutton in the double-digit class is a big fish, although any legal-size specimen is a praiseworthy catch.

FS