Our tropical seas are blessed with some quality demersal species that provide good fun on rod and reel and later taste great too on the table. Main targets are of course the various Snappers and Groupers, they range from real small to real behemoths and can be a challenge to pry out of their homes at times. As such, these bread and butter species are a favourite for many coastal anglers.
Like most demersals anywhere, these bottom dwellers lack the aggression and speed of say, any pelagic cousin. Hence most times, artificials have to be dropped within easy reach for any sort of reaction. It is no surprise then, that slow jigs with lots of flutter and hangtime do well, along with the various octopus and squid imitations that bounce along the seabed. We are of course talking about the Inchiku and Madai contraptions that have proven so successful over time.
Once again we found ourselves on the water, not far from the coast, medium light tackle in hand and spirits high in anticpation of pulling a few good ones...
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| This Blenny wasn't what we had in mind to start the day. It wasn't shy about taking the mini IMA Gunpeki jig... |
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| We knew right away it was going to be a slow day when after a few drifts, this were what we were catching. On ultralight gear though, these Stripeys were pretty fun too. IMA Gunpeki jig hits again... |
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| The Striped Snappers weren't afraid of bigger offerings as well, this guy taking the Shout! Flash jig meant for bigger fish... |
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| At last we get into the proper stuff with this nice Fingermark Bream on the Shout! Flash - flutter jig extraodinaire! Dressed with the latest Rockfish Assist hooks from Shout! and worked with the Majorcraft Giant Killing Slow Pitch Special, the best rod for this job... |
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| Another nice Goldie flaps onboard. This guy fell for the ubiquitous Bassday Nin Raba madai jig... |
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| With more patience come the better fish. Estuary Cods are the most common Grouper species found in our waters and you can bet that at least 5 out of 10 hits on these jigs worked near the bottom turn out to be these guys. No complains what so ever though... |
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| The fluttering Evergreen Caprice jig has been a fave for years, and they prove themselves over and over again... |
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| You can always count on the Bassday Nin Raba madai jig for a good feed... |
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| Another nice Estuary Cod on the new Shout! Flash jig... |
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| The rarer Nassau variety seldom seen in our waters. This guy went for the Evergreen Caprice with gusto... |
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| Another Nin Raba caught Cod... |
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| Getting near the rocks with the Nin Raba can only mean a few encounters with these kind of fishes. They aren't to be messed with though... |
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| On days when nothing else would produce, the Bassday wonder-madais would not cease to shine... |
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| Here's a nice specimen that would require a bigger dinner plate. Bassday Nin Raba again, what else? |
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| And he's on a roll with another sizeable Estuary Cod on the same madai jig... |
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| Juveniles were released to fight another day... |
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| But the better fish were treated properly, bled and iced to end up on the table for a few happy friends. This Bassday Nin Raba had done its job outstandingly for the day. This last good Grouper says it all... |
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