During the spring and summer months, the Spanish mackerel and cobia are abundant. To successfully fish the county's artificial reefs, it is important to understand how our reefs are constructed. A high-profile, large diameter design is used varying spacing from one structure to another. Two methods of fishing artificial reefs seem to yield the best results. Once they are located, establish a trolling pattern to pass over the structures.
Bottom fishing is usually most successful when employing a technique known as bottom chumming.
Once anchored over a reef, put suitable chum in a reusable weighted bag. Lower the bag over the reef, release the chum and pull up the bag for reuse. The chum will help lure out the leery bottom dwellers like grouper and snapper. The first organisms to attach themselves to a new reef normally are the barnacles and filamentous algae. Many small fish appear to browse on algae growth and sea urchins appear to feed extensively on this plant material.