Family: Labridae
Genus a & Species:Tautoga Onitis
Description: Tautoga are usually a mottled brown to black shade on top with a white or gray chin and underbelly. They can grow up to 3 feet in length and 22 pounds, but are most commonly 2 to 4 pounds. They have thick rubbery lips and powerful jaws. The backs of their throats contain a set of teeth resembling molars. Together these are used to pick and crush prey such as mollusks and crustaceans. They prefer rocky areas and shipwrecks.
When water temps stay above 45 degrees the tog will stay on the jetties and in the back waters. The water temps will vary with the stage of the tide but if there are a couple contiguous tides where the water temps drop to 42-43 degrees, the tog leave for the deeper structures. This happened this season. One day a charter went out and fished inshore structure and they had a five man limit in 90 minutes. Others went to the same wreck two days later and the tog had left. They figured over 100 keeper size tog were on that one piece of structure.There are hundreds or perhaps a thousand or more keepers on the average ocean jetty.
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