THE annual run of school bluefin tuna kicks off every summer along the southern coastline of Australia. It is here, shadowing the abundance of bait schools found in the same offshore regions, that these bluewater bullets fall within reach of many trailerboat owners looking to tussle with one of the better line burning sportfish targets available to southern-based fisho’s right up until late winter. With fish popping up from east to west the exact when and where can fluctuate depending on location but seasonal patterns tend to emerge and this undoubtedly helps narrow down the search window.
Average school fish size can literally range from somewhere around 2kg right through to 30kg and where you are fishing will often dictate what size within the spectrum that you’re likely to encounter. The Great Australian Bight for example is home to a much more juvenile fish population and you’re unlikely to bump heads with fish in excess of 10kg or so here. SW Victoria on the other hand is fairly consistent with providing fish at the upper end of the range. It really can vary quite drastically.
Despite being commonly portrayed as a casual and easy bluewater option these ocean speedsters can in fact behave in quite the opposite manner. If you’ve ever experienced the feeling of chasing your own shadow well this is pretty much the fishing equivalent. You can literally locate a paddock of school fish only to lose them upon approach before they pop up again a few hundred metres away.
The cat and mouse game that ensues can prove to be extremely frustrating, testing the nerve of even the most patient angler. Unfortunately the downside of fishing within relative proximity to shore means that the main tuna haunts are often hit hard with fishing pressure and this is probably one of the key reasons that fish become flighty. On some days you’ll struggle to get within lure range as they instantly sound and disappear with the slightest outboard noise approaching. Even the super quiet 4-strokes can hardly get a look in at times! Fish are also feeding on very small bait profiles too and may therefore turn their nose up at most things you decide to troll or throw at them. When the fishing is tough many anglers often resort to cubing pilchard chunks on the drift however for the avid lure nut like myself this is a bitter pill to swallow.
By adopting a few key principles and techniques beyond the usual run of the mill lure tactics however there’s every chance you can stay within the lure game and turn your tuna session around when all seems lost!
FLIGHTY FISH APPROACH
Flighty fish really need to be approached in
a stealthy manner and there really is no point burning in at full noise and expecting to hook up with relative ease and consistency. When such stealth is required casting is by far the number one way to get in on the action.
The aim here should always be to position your boat up-wind of any fish along with an estimated guess to predict which way they are moving. Keeping ahead of the school with the wind at your back will allow casting distance to be maximised in order to keep as far away from the tuna to avoid spooking them. Cut the motor and drift into casting range for those final few metres and avoid the temptation of persevering just that little bit further with the motor still running. There really is a small window to work with here and those extra few metres can quite easily be your downfall.
Casting rods around 7’6 to 8’ in length and a 2-4 PE rating are perfectly matched to these silver-blue nuggets and the likely lures you’ll be chucking at them. For me the Storm Monstar and Rapala R-Type ranges offer the perfect affordable options for your everyday tuna casting rod so be sure to check them out. Getting the balance right will help ensure your lures are finding their way into the zone from a fair distance away.
If you’re still struggling to get within casting range then sometimes the decision needs to be made to move on in search of a different school that may potentially be less spooky and more responsive. It’s always hard to leave fish in search of others but it’s a decision that may very well pay off for itself at the end of the day particularly when there’s other boats harassing the same school that you’re trying to work.
LURE PROFILE
I’m going to avoid sounding too cliché here by saying you should always look to match the hatch when the bite is tough. Sure there’s merit in this especially when considering that these school fish are feeding on very small pilchards, anchovies, redbait or similar.
But one thing I’ve noticed over the years is that we’ve observed many occasions where this thought process is totally debunked. Tell me why a tuna would refuse a natural looking pilchard lure profile but nail a fluorescent bright green or pink version of the same lure? Correct me if I’m wrong but I can’t recall any bait species in this neck of the woods that would even closely resemble the latter so to me this says there is more at play than what we think especially around contrast and light reflection. Tuna have a very keen eye and rely on conditions at hand to assist with their vision.
For instance a bright lure on a dark day will likely stand out more to them whilst a darker profile on a sunny day will produce a stronger silhouette in contrast against the bright conditions. I also believe that UV patterns will provide even better light reflection and pop-factor to really make a difference when the fishing is tough. And sometimes you only need to sit down and reflect on what worked or didn’t work after a tuna mission to start to form some of these reasons and theories yourself. Either way the underlying premise is that it’s well worth circulating through all options in your tackle box until you literally get sick of changing lures. You may very well stumble across “the one” that the fish are more than happy to nail.
Beyond colours and patterns I should also add that it’s sometimes worth considering a point of difference to the usual lures finding their way into schools or fish. Stickbaits and metal slugs are common fare but it is the old surface popper that is quite often overlooked as a go-to option with bluefin. It sort of makes sense in a way though, I mean if the tuna aren’t even remotely interested in a realistic bait- resembling stickbait then why would they smash something behaving in a completely different manner to what they are feeding on?
Breaking up the monotony and offering something different that may intrigue or excite the tuna is the only reason I can think of. But either way the truth of the matter is that this theory can work and work very well at times when the bite is tough.
FISH BEHAVIOUR
Fish behaviour also needs to be interpreted in order to sky rocket your results further. This can fluctuate at times with school bluefin and there literally are days when the fish will stick down deep and rarely surface, if at all. In these instances you’ll likely need to resort to dropping jigs or trolling deeper lures along with the addition of spreader bars or teasers in an attempt to raise a few from below.
This is where a heavy reliance on your sounder skills comes into play. At other times you can spot these school fish sunning on the surface particularly during the middle part of the day. This sunning activity is largely believed to reflect the tuna’s attempt to warm themselves in order to speed up the digestion process and these are the fish that are usually quite difficult to hook for obvious reasons. I can probably liken it to finding my own way onto the couch after a wholesome hearty meal where the last thing I’m thinking about is what can I eat next. Thus when the fish are sunning themselves sometimes it’s worth having a plan B such as a bit of bottom fishing to pass the time until the fish hopefully fire up again ready for round two in the afternoon.
This is a sensible way to tick off a few other target species whilst maintaining some form of sanity instead of playing chase the tuna school until you really lose your patience and mind!
“Breezers” on the other hand are fish pushing up or feeding towards the surface which causes very subtle ripples or darker water to form. This can often be depicted against general wave and wind direction or even the surrounding water colouration, and this is often a signal that the fish are in feeding mode or at least likely to be interested. Your sounder will certainly help confirm your suspicions in the early stages but once you hone in on what to look for it can be quite obvious. Unfortunately stumbling across a school of breezers still doesn’t guarantee that you’ll hook-up. In fact you can sometimes lob a lure into a chaotic surface feeding frenzy without even coming up tight. So you really need to revert back to your technique and lure choice options as I’ve already alluded to otherwise beyond that there’s only a few other lure options to consider.
This includes downsizing your leader and utilising the less-visible properties of fluorocarbon to try and fool the eagle-eyed bluefin tuna, especially in bright calm conditions. With this in mind tuna still have quite an abrasive set of teeth so you may experience the odd lure casualty if one gets inhaled but I’d still prefer this over not hooking up at all. At least you know you’re on the right track if things are getting eaten! You may even consider running smaller hooks and terminal bits or even single hooks instead of trebles so they stick out less and produce a more stealthy lure presentation.
There truly is no one recipe fits all scenario however and remaining flexible or adaptable to the situation will certainly help. We all have our little toolbox of tactics to resort to when things aren’t going as planned and hopefully you’re now armed with a few more options to pull out on these at times flighty school fish. It’ll all be worth it when you return back to the ramp with sore arms and some fresh sashimi to boot.