SALTWATER

FLATHEAD

BREAM

SNAPPER

BARRAMUNDI

FLATHEAD

This estuary and offshore species are one of the easiest fish to catch and also one of the tastiest. Not the prettiest fish in the country but certainly one of the most caught by recreational anglers. A fantastic lure target, the flathead is found living on the bottom in sandy and muddy areas and is a classic target for soft bait anglers – one of the best fish to target when first starting off. There are over 10 species of flathead in Australia and they are available in every state. The most popular species of flathead caught by anglers are the Blue Spot, Sand, Tiger and Dusky Flatheads. With generous bag limits, these fish are a great target for the table, however, in recent times, the Dusky flathead has become a popular Catch & Release fish

Length: 30cm – 1m+
Distribution: Australia wide.
Hotspots: Lake Macquarie, St Georges Basin, Gold Coast, Mallacoota, Glenelg River, Derwent River, Swan River.
Fishing type: Small to medium hard and soft body lures. Fresh baits such as mullet and prawns.

Best Lures

Powerbait 3″ Nemesis Paddletail

Gulp! 4″ Paddleshad

Shimma Shrimp 100mm

BREAM

Commonly known years ago as a ‘bread & butter’ species, the bream has become one of the countries most popular tournament fish. Still great table fair, there are three species of bream found in Australia. Southern states have the black bream while the northern states have both the yellow finned and the pikey breams. A fantastic lure fishing target, bream are an aggressive schooling fish that can be caught from bank or boat. With a small to medium-sized mouth, the bream is better suited to lures that are 2.5cm to 7cm in length. Both hard-bodied lures and soft baits are best.

Length: 20-45cm+
Distribution: Australia wide.
Hotspots: Lake Macquarie, St Georges Basin, Gold Coast, Mallacoota, Glenelg River, Derwent River, Swan River.
Fishing type: Small to medium hard and soft body lures. Fresh baits such as prawns, worms and yabbies.

Best Lures

Gulp! 2″ Crabby

Powerbait 2.5″ Grub

PRO-TECH BRIMZ 38D

SNAPPER

An outstanding looking fish and one very suited to the table, the snapper is a tough fighter and lives in a broad range of environments. Generally found around inshore reefs and headlands, juvenile snapper can be caught in estuary systems and adult snapper can be found in hundreds of metres of water off-shore. The heavyset jaw and shell crushing teeth of the snapper make it the perfect candidate for eating around the reef and rocky ground. The perfect scavenger, snapper will attack any and all lures you put in front of it! However, in the last 20 years, this fish species has been renowned for being the perfect soft bait target.

Length: 30cm – 1m+
Distribution: SEQ, NSW, VIC, TAS, SA, Southern WA.
Hotspots: Port Phillip Bay, Jervis Bay, Coffs Harbour, Moreton Bay, Rottnest Island, Geraldton.
Fishing type: Medium to large soft body lures and jigs. Fresh baits such as squid and pilchards.

Best Lures

Gulp! 9″ Jerskhad

Gulp! 5″ Grub

SKID JIG

BARRAMUNDI

One of Australian’s most important and iconic sports and table fish. One of the most aggressive lure eaters, the ‘barra’ is the classic all-rounder when it comes to fishing styles – these fish will eat anything!

A magnificent looking fish, the barramundi can be found in freshwater billabongs & rivers, estuary systems, river mouths and rocky headlands of the tropics – also stocked into freshwater impoundments in most states.

The barramundi is an ambush predator and will use cover to hide whilst waiting for food to swim past. Queensland impoundment fishing (freshwater) has become very popular for these fish over the last 30 years and the fish that you can catch are arguably the largest in the country! These fish are favoured by anglers because of the fantastic topwater fishing experience.

Length: 40cm – 1m+
Distribution: QLD, NT, and north west WA.
Hotspots: Weipa, Rockhampton, Townsville, Darwin, Arnhem Land, Kimberley.
Fishing type: Medium to large hard, surface and soft body lures. Fresh baits such as mullet, herring and cherabin.

Best Lures

Gulp! 4″ Paddleshad

POWERBAIT HD Hollowbelly 5″

Shimma Fork 100mm

PRO-TECH Bazz Bait

LEARN THE BASICS

In this instructional series, Michael Guest runs through everything you need to know to get started chasing fish on lures. Follow the topics from 1 to 7 to learn exactly what tackle, techniques, locations and times are going to help you catch more fish!