Home > July 2012

July 2012

Are You Angler? You Must Know This Tips For Catfish Fishing

Category : Off

- Timing is everything. Go fishing in the morning and evening. That's when the catfish are in search of food, like a hook. This the good time for catfish fishing. At this point in shallow water, where they are easier to catch. You can always cats at any time of day, but it takes much more skill.

- Vai where cats. If you are fishing in a river, looking for a deep place. Catfish tend to slip on the bottom and looking for food. If the fish near a river, try to turn the line around the mouth of the river flow. This is where many of these cats river in search of food.

- Catching cats in a river. The best place to further decrease in flow upstream of an obstacle, such as rocks or icing on the capture. This is an area where they can crawl along the bottom searching for food, the slower movement, and you will probably find interesting.
If fishing in the river open, you can catch the cats in this way, but it's better if a recent rain.

- The use of live bait. Catfish prefer live bait, especially what is pathetic. Nose for serious things smelly crayfish, offal, fish, tuna loins, sausages, etc.

- Set your bait. Like humans, fish, cat gets sick of eating the same thing all the time. If the bait from time to time and try new things, more biting. They are not picky eaters, who eat almost anything.

- The right hook. In general, if you want to catch bigger fish, you need big hooks. For catfish fishing, the best hooks are 3/0 or 4/0. A few minutes you get a better idea for you. Compared with other fish, it is very easy to catch catfish with small hooks, so I would start small. You can catch some big fish with small hooks, hooks, but they are great, nothing less.

- Priming. This technique will certainly be more biting. Chum is fish balls prepared food you can buy in a store or you. Just to throw the bait into the water, the fish as they do frequently. The CHUM will attract cats and you can sit inside and wrap it takes a little trial and error, because some places are better than others to solicit.

Lake Huron Chinook Salmon

Category : , , , Off

According to Michigan's Department of Natural Resources, Chinook salmon are experiencing a decline in Lake Huron.

"Recreational harvest of Chinook salmon has virtually vanished in the southern two-thirds of Lake Huron," said acting DNR Fisheries Division Chief Jim Dexter. "It's obvious the forage base is no longer available to support large numbers of Chinooks in Lake Huron."

Analysis of recreational catch data shows only the northern portion of Lake Huron continues to produce a viable recreational fishery.

Due to the poor return and harvest of stocked Chinooks, Michigan DNR plans to reduce Chinook salmon stocking in Lake Huron by more than half in 2012, compared to 2011 levels.

DNR consulted with the Chippewa-Ottawa Resource Authority, the Lake Huron Citizen Fishery Advisory Committee, Ontario fisheries officials, and held three public meetings in the Lake Huron Basin before making the reductions.

source: Michigan Department of Natural Resources

Basic Bottom Rig

Off

Basic bottom rig. Just leader to hook w/o sinker
Everyone loves bottom rigs. It's easy to tie, cheap & effective. This is probably the first ever contraptions early humans use to catch fish with hook & line. I'll outline here some of the simplest ones that I've used and still using when the conditions call for bottom fishing.

Most fishing blogs, magazines & articles go in length to introduce bottom rigs that are complex to tie & may not be very effective. My personal preference when tying rigs is to follow the popular motto, K.I.S.S. that means, "Keep It Simple Stupid!". The reason to keep rigs simple is simply, fish have eyes, they also have lateral lines & other sensory organs that Humans do not possess. To survive in the wild or even in a paypond, fishes need to constantly be on the look out for dangers from predators & the ever annoying Anglers. YES!!! That's you & me. Fish are especially cautious in highly pressured waters (read: constant fishing activity) & so our watery friends becomes extra careful when approaching food, A.K.A. baits. Coarse fishing is all about presentation. Let's move on to the rigs.

Basic of the basic. 
Have you heard the saying, "Hook, line, sinker"? Well, this is even simpler, it's just hook & line. That's it. Normally, most course fishing anglers would attach a small light sinker on the rig to get longer distance & more accurate bait placement when casting but this may not be necessary if you are fishing in the following conditions. 
  • still water pond or lake with minimal current
  • heavy baits, eg. groundbait, dead bait, nuts or fruit baits
  • distance & accuracy is not a requirement
Two common baits that I use.
If your bait is heavy enough, the main line is light & the fish you are after is a bottom feeder, there is no need for a sinker. In fact, fishing with minimal tackles with just a hook & line is finesse fishing. Recommended in highly pressured waters. Normally for this rig, I use either bread or dedak (groundbait). You could also use this rig for Catfish fishing with chicken heart or gizzard.

Some modifications if necessary.
There may be times keeping things too simple is just not possible so we need to modify the rig to adapt to the situation.

Trace Wire/Thick Braided Leader
Trace Wire
If you are after toothy fishes or is aware of such fishes feeding at the bottom, eg. Pacu, Snakeheads & etc, you might want to add a short 5" of 15 to 20lb trace wire leader to avoid line being cut by their razor sharp tooth or else, a thick, 50 to 80lb braided line.

Keep the wire/braid line as short as possible, perhaps even below 3" length, enough just to avoid the line getting bitten. Tie an Albright knot to join with mainline followed by Snelling the hook with the wire/braid. I prefer not to use metal sleeve as this will give away the finesse of the rig. In fact, I always paint my wire black with a marker pen to reduce shine on the rig.

100% Fluorocarbon
100% Fluorocarbon Leader / Ultra Thin Monofilament
If waters is clear or the bottom is featureless, eg. sand bottom, I would advise to tie a 30 to 50cm of 100% Fluorocarbon leader to make leader less visible or near invisible. By far, the most finesse way to fish. Ultra thin, 4 to 6lb transparent monofilament line may be an alternative to 100% FC leaders but take note of it's low breaking strength.






Fishing Off the Bottom
Fishing off the bottom
The definition of fishing off the bottom is to present your bait slightly off the bottom but not completely static on the bed. This can be accomplished by adding some floating parts on the bait or select baits that can float. The objective is to add some buoyancy to your bait. This is necessary when the bed is muddy or completely covered with vegetation. Having your bait presented this way makes it easier for fish to find your bait. This is rather difficult to accomplish & will take some trial & error to get it right. One simple way is to do it is with fish pellets. Naturally, fish pellets are manufactured to float. By bunching enough pellets together with the correct size of pellet & hook weight, the bait would naturally rise & sink at the slightest water movement.

Additional info:
Fishing the basic bottom rig does have it's limitations. Since there are no sinker attached, it will take some skill casting to reach the desired distance as well as accurate placement of your bait but this compromise is worth the added finesse. For best results, use thin monofilament lines in the test range of 8 to 10lb.

Some fishes that I've caught with this rig.
Tilapia on bottom rig with dedak bait

Pacu on bottom rig with dedak bait

Another Pacu hooked on a bottom rig
Catfish (Keli) on bottom rig with chicken gizzard bait
Red Belly Pacu on bottom rig with dedak bait


Floating Rigs

Off

Basic Floating rig
Personally, I find floating rigs are an excellent way to do coarse fishing, especially in wild places where the bottom has thick vegetation or is muddy. I'm going to share here some floating rig designs that I normally use.














Basic Floating Rig
To construct the rig, I use thin transparent mono lines in the poundage of between 12 to 20lb. As for the float, or bobber, I would use a cheap & readily available plastic bobber. Just tie your hook on the end of your line, then attached the bobber to your main line using the spring locks on top & bottom of bobber. Slide it up or down to adjust dept of bait presentation.

The size of these tackles is entirely up to you but try to use logic & common sense to match them appropriately. Don't use a super sized Bobber with a tiny hook when you know there aren't going to be big fishes in the pond. Rule of thumb when float fishing in new waters (or paypond) is to start with small rigs then when the fishes seem to be bigger & tougher, upgrade to heavier tackles. Always remember, float fishing is a finesse technique. Keep it simple!




Long Bobber
Assortment of long bobbers
Another form of Float that I frequently use are the long bobber designs popular in UK. This type of bobber is very sensitive to bites & any small disturbance to the bait is reflected on the bobber shaking up & down. This bobber design is also resistant to wind & underwater current so it move less than the conventional ball shaped bobbers. This design is slightly more difficult to rig as you'll need to use split shots to secure the bobber on the line.



Live Bait Floating Rig
Here's another form of floating rig designed for live baits. This is a popular rig used at Saltwater payponds for Barramundi (Siakap) fishing. To tie this rig, you'll need some thick leaders, minimal of 30 to 50lb test & also a specially weighted bobber that has a sinker permanently attached at the bottom.

Float fishing is an exciting & fun way to catch fish. The thrill is to seek the bobber dives rapidly & disappear. Then you wait for 1 or 2 seconds before striking to set the hook.




Here are some of the fishes I've caught with floating rigs.

A pair of Carps caught using Basic floating rig.
A Siakap caught using Live Bait floating rig.


A Tilapia caught using Long Bobber floating rig.

A Lampam Jawa caught using Basic floating rig.

A Pacu caught using Long Bobber floating rig.









Even a Terrapin fell for my Long Bobber floating 
rig with pellet baits.

Summer Fish Kills

Category : , , Off

During summer, hot, dry weather and low water levels can trigger fish kills in ponds, lakes, and rivers. Although summer fish kills rarely affect entire fish populations, these events can impact local ecosystems, disrupt fishing, and alarm the public.

Summer fish kills are often caused by low oxygen levels in the water. When periods of excess heat occur along with little or no rainfall, water levels and oxygen levels can drop, resulting in increased stresses on fish. These same conditions can trigger algal blooms which further deplete oxygen levels in bodies of water.

Maine Brook Trout Pond Survey

Category : , , , , Off

The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife recently released a summary of its 2011 Brook Trout Pond Survey. During 2011, 81 volunteer anglers logged nearly 1900 hours of time on the project. Anglers came from Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Vermont to participate in the survey.

Volunteers searched for brook trout in a total of 112 ponds, and 95 ponds were successfully surveyed from the original list of 187 ponds. Volunteers confirmed brook trout presence in 24 of the surveyed ponds and observed signs of brook trout presence in another 21 ponds.  Volunteers confirmed an absence of brook trout in 50 ponds, which is equally valuable information to fisheries biologists. The 75 ponds that were not surveyed will be added to the 2012 Pond List.

As a result of the surveys, 43 ponds were recommended for more extensive surveys by MDIFW biologists in 2012. During the summer, fisheries biologists will be assessing the status of the fish population as well as completing a depth profile and water quality analysis.

The next step in the process will be for fisheries biologists to evaluate how best to conserve these native trout populations and their habitats through appropriate management strategies.

297 new ponds are being added to the list of waters to survey in 2012. Surveys can be completed any time before September 30, 2012.

For more information about the Maine brook trout pond survey program, visit: www.tumaine.org/brooktrout.htm

Or contact Amanda Moeser at (207) 781-6180 x207 or amoeser@maineaudubon.org.

source: Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife

Tilapia Fishing - Part 1

Off

Nile Tilapia
(Oreochromis niloticus)
Introduction
This was the first fish I landed as a little 4 year old boy & was thoroughly hooked on fishing ever since.

Mozambique Tilapia
(Oreochromis mossambicus )
Tilapia is a fish native to the African continent & was first introduced into Malaysia back in the 1960s as a form of sewage control. The fish, being omnivorous feeders would clean up any edible garbage at rivers & any drainage or irrigation canals. To this day, the fish is still stocked at water catchment lakes & ponds around urban areas. Tilapia can grow & spawn fast as well as survive in low oxygen waters which makes them ideal to be cultivated as a cheap source of food fish for poorer human populations. Tilapia has been exported to most parts of the world & through years of research & development, had spawned several hybrid species meant as food fish. The most prolific species of Tilapia is the Red Tilapia that was first introduced by Taiwanese aquaculture industry in the late 1980s. This species of Tilapia is the most common freshwater food fish in Malaysia & they taste good! Generally there are 3 species of Tilapia in Malaysia, the Nile Tilapia, Mozambique Tilapia & Red Tilapia. Anyway, enough with history, let's move on to fishing!
Red Tilapia
(Oreochromis mossambicus)

Easy my Foot!
Most seasoned anglers look upon Tilapia fishing as a child's play. The usual comments are "it's too easy", or "where is the challenge?". The truth is, although it may sound easy, it's actually quite a challenge to catch them. My focus in this article is on the common Red Tilapia that is easily found at most payponds throughout Malaysia. Although the original Tilapia & Red Tilapia share similar biological features, they differ in their behaviors. Red Tilapia prefers to feed at top water as they have been accustomed in that way since fries. Nile Tilapia being wild fishes, prefers to filter feed at the bottom.

The challenge in Tilapia fishing is not about how strong they pull or fight. It's the challenge of enticing such a cowardly fish to take your bait!

Knowing Their Behavior & Biology

The Red Tilapia isn't as tough as their cousins, the Nile Tilapia. They require moderately clean water to thrive. They also have a keen sense of eye sight and are easily spooked by human presence. Observation of Red Tilapia are they move & feed in a pack, often in groups of 5 to 10 of similar sizes. Being omnivorous & a big eater, Tilapia are also cannibalistic. They would often prey on their young if it fits in their mouth. Accustomed to feeding on floating fish pellets, means they are top water feeders.

So below lies the critical points to consider when fishing for Red Tilapia.

(A) keen eye sight - the angler should use thin & transparent fishing lines. Most obvious choice are monofilament fishing lines in the poundage of 6 to 12lb with a diameter no more than 0.25mm.

(B) Easily spooked - the tackles used must be small & discreet. We are talking about using the smallest clips & swivels, those in the rating of < 30lb. Sinker too has to be kept as small as possible, only enough to cast bait out or better with no sinkers at all. Using very light lines also does not scare the fish too much if they bump into your lines. Being easily spooked, the angler's reaction to setting the hook must be correct judgement too. Setting too early fish gets away, too late fish gets away.

(C) Huge appetite - Unlike other fishes, the Red Tilapia was bred as human food source & so the faster they grow, the better it is for the fish farmer. We can do Red Tilapia fishing anytime during the day or even at night. Burley would attract them to go into a feeding frenzy as they scramble to compete for food.

(D) Omnivores - the bait used can be either protein based such as Earthworms, insects & chicken gizzards or vege based such as corns, beans or bread. By far, the simplest bait to use are fish pellets.

(E) Filter feeder - like all filter feeders species, this fish does not bite or chomp onto it's food. It just suck food into it's mouth, like a vacuum cleaner. To hook this kind of fish, we've got to use smaller, thinner hooks which is lighter in weight so when the fish sucks the bait, the hooks goes into the mouth as well.

How to Catch Tilapia
The SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) for Tilapia float fishing is listed below:

STAGE 1 - Bait Preparation
Fish pellets
Ground bait (dedak)
My favorite bait for Tilapia fishing is using fish pellets. I always prepare my baits at home or at least an hour before fishing. The proper way to soak pellet is NOT to flood your bag of pellets & leave it there for 5 to 10mins. This will only cause your pellets to expand too rapidly, turning into a soggy pile of goo. Instead,  pour a small cup of hot water into the bag of pellets & shack it a bit to wet all the pellets. After about a min,  pour away the water. By now, the pellets would be expanding but slowly. Leave the pellet to expand by itself for another 30mins. The objective is to allow the moisture to sip into the core of the pellet so that it turns soft & spongy. Once this is achieved, I would pour in some ground bait powder (dedak) & mix it well to give them an added flavoring.

STAGE 2 - Rig Preparation
Light tackle float fishing
Since being introduced to the Umbrella rig by a senior angler, I have been fishing Tilapia with this rig ever since. Refer to my earlier article about the Umbrella rig. NOTE: This rig has to be prepared at home first or bought off the shelf at tackle shops. Personally, I always love to make my own rigs as it gives you that added satisfaction of landing a fish with your own crafted rig. Other simpler rigs with a single hook & float would be applicable but remember to use very thin lines, small floats & tackles.

Regards to rod & reel, use Ultralight tackles. 6ft rods, 1000 size reels, use 8 to 12lb mainline, transparent mono.

STAGE 3 - Burley the waters
Using the earlier soaked pellets, toss out a generous handful of pellets into open waters at least 5 meters from the banks. Do this once then if the fish has not started a feeding frenzy within 5mins, toss out another handful. Do not overly burley as this will only waste your baits. This is the part where fishing patience is observed. Once the frenzy begins, it's time to cast your bait out near or at center of frenzy. The closer to the frenzy, the better.

STAGE 4 - Take the bait!
NOW is the part of the heart racing, adrenalin pump of waiting for that float to dive. The Tilapia will be chomping down the floating pellets one by one & it's only a moments before it's your bait's turn. The moment the float dives, you only have perhaps 1 or 2 seconds to strike. If you're lucky, the Tilapia would even hook itself without setting it.








Once you've achieved a positive hook up, it's the tug-o-war game between you & the fish. So now, go out & do some Tilapia fishing!



Nice fish to eat

Another nice Tilapia on Umbrella rig with pellet bait


Asam fish dish
Tilapia BBQ
Deep fried Tilapia with herbs

Common Snakeheads - Part 2 - Baits & Techniques

Off

What Baits to Use.
Traditionally, Haruan anglers had always relied on baby frogs. Small little frog no larger than 3 inches is the ideal bait. Personally, I am not in favor of frog baits as it is troublesome & yucky to hold frogs. It's also damaging to the environment to kill off large sum of frogs from the wild as they serve a purpose to cull insect & mosquito populations. When Haruan fishing, my favorite baits are Spinners & plastic frogs.

NOTE: For Haruan fishing, always use weedless lures. Haruans love to hang out in weedy waters & if you are fishing with exposed hooks, you are just asking for trouble.

Spinners
One of my favorite lure for Haruan fishing. It has proven effective in shallow waters such as swamps & stagnant pools. I assemble my own Spinners & rig it with soft plastic bait for that extra attraction. The principle technique in using Spinners is to cast it out, let it sink to the bottom then retrieve it as fast as possible without the lure coming to the surface. Spinners with their revolving blade creates plenty of flash & vibration to excite or anger fish to take a bite at it. This coupled with the flipping tail from the SP grub is irresistible to the Haruan.

Plastic Frogs
Another of my favorite lure. This design has helped me land some nice specimens ranging from 1 to 1.5kg. The way to retrieve a plastic frog is to imitate a live frog's movement on the water. The technique is to cast the frog out to the opposite bank or near some bushes & then let it 'drop' onto water as like real frogs hopping. Retrieve in a slow, jerking manner with frequent pause.


Texas Rig
When fishes are not biting, they could have been spooked & the use of more finesse form of lure is required. The texas rig had helped me land some specimens over the years when both the spinner & frog lures fail. Just cast the lure out, let it sink to the bottom & slowly retrieve it back. Make sure the lure makes contact with the bottom. This is a great lure to use when the Haruans are not moving about, hiding mostly at the bottom.






A rare occasion where a Haruan was caught with float fishing






Common Snakeheads - Part 1 - Location

Off

Introduction
Known to locals as Haruan or Sang Yu, the Common Snakehead is the most commonly found in Malaysia. Their scientific name is Channa Striata. In other fish libraries, they are also known as Chevron or Striped snakeheads. The fish is highly prized as food & also eaten as a form of medicine. It is believed that consuming Common Snakeheads meat  boost healing rate for people after surgeries.

Notice the stripes on a Haruan?
They are mostly found in shallow fresh waters in both ponds, lakes & rivers but their preferred habitat is non-moving dead waters, especially swamps & stagnant streams. Being ambush predators, they like to hideout among bushes & shallow bank areas to prey on passing minnows, frogs, prawns & insects. The Haruan as we'll refer to them from here onward, is by nature an ambush hunter. They are capable of high speed precision attacks on lures & baits from stationary position. I've personally witnessed many times, them attacking my lure some 1 meter away. My favorite comment for Haruan is, "Torpedo attack" as they are known to launch their straight lined cylindrical bodies into high speed ramming action creating a V-shape wave on the surface straight at lures followed by a loud splash on the surface. Small Haruans have been known to be extremely aggressive (read: still naive & dumb) to attack lures as large as themselves & even larger causing the lures to hop on the surface. I have also observed Haruans taking lures in a very subtle manner where they would gently rise up to the surface on a 45° angle & gulp down a surface lure, especially, plastic frogs, much like a shark attack. It is common for Haruans to jump out of water chasing lures. There is now a trend for urban anglers to do Snakehead fishing at payponds but my focus here is on wild Haruans.

WORD OF CAUTION: Wild fishing is always fraught with dangers & risk as we are trudging in wild natural environment. Always wear protective gear such as Wellington boots, army style cargo pants, long sleeve shirt & caps or hats. In such wild environments, you are bound to encounter wild animals such as snakes, ants, lizards & even wild boars. Never go wild fishing alone unless you are well versed of the area.

How to Tell the Presence of Haruans.
The first thing to learn about Haruan fishing is NOT to throw a lure or live bait blindly into every inch of water, thereby wasting time & energy. You must learn to 'spot' them, hence the term, sight casting. Once you've located signs of Haruan presence, then only should you bombard the area with lures/baits. Here are some signs on how to spot a Haruan.

(A) Bubbles - Haruans being air breather, need to rise to the surface to gulp air once every few minutes. Looks for these signs around bushes, weeds near banks.

(B) Bow waves - in shallow waters, especially those less than 2ft deep, when a sizable fish moves around, you would notice a V-shape wave forming on the surface. These could be Haruans moving about.

(C) Sudden splashes - Haruans usually feed between the 3 hours after dawn & 3 hours before dusk, in Peninsula Malaysia, this is usually from 7am to 10am & 4pm to 7pm. This is the time when they go about attacking prey. If you notice sudden violent splashes on the surface, this is good indication of a Snakehead presence.

Where to find them.
Knowing how to tell their presence is only one of the key requirements. Knowing where they would be is another. Being ambush predators, they loves to hang out in underwater vegetation, both for shelter & to prey on small animals for food. I'll list down here some of the places I normally start looking.

Lily pond
(A) Banks - Haruan fishing is unique among other predatory fishes. They do not swim about in open waters but usually hang out near the banks or just 2 meter out from the banks. Focus your search around banks & patches of islands.

Bushy waters
(B) Bushes - I've hooked Haruans as big as a man's arm right smack on a patch of tall grassy bush with only about 1 feet of water. If you see such structures, don't be afraid to cast your bait there (provided it's rigged weedless). This could be Haruans who has a liking for surface animals, eg. frogs, insects or even baby snakes.

Semi dried ponds
(C) Connecting streams - Being ambush predators, Haruans do hang out at connecting water openings such as streams or even drains waiting to ambush tiny fishes flowing from the streams. This would be easy meal for them as the tiny fishes would be disoriented by the currents.

I will continue on the next part on baits for Haruan fishing.



Powered by Blogger.