Snapper Are Difficult To Catch But Greatly Prized

Snapper Are Difficult To Catch But Greatly Prized

By Frank Schumaker

The snapper is an unpredictable fish. This is largely due to it being very much a rover. Snapper can be there one day, here another, and at times, fastidious feeders.

It might be expected that the snapper would not be sought after by anglers, yet to every surfcaster, they are greatly prized. Like trout fishing, there is a fascination to snapper fishing. Similar to trout, the snapper is an enigma, giving sport one day and being totally uncooperative the next.

It is the continual striving to fathom the snapper’s moods which makes the fish a prized catch. A successful snapper fishing trip makes demands upon the angler for thought, versatility and technique that give rich satisfaction when the snapper is caught.

It used to be a lot easier to Catch Snapper in Marlborough

The snapper fishing at the top of the South Island is decidedly inferior to that of a couple of decades ago. According to experienced surfcasters, catching snapper in earlier times was relatively easy. I’ve even been told of snapper in the shallow surf of Marlborough’s Cloudy Bay with their tails out of the water as they dug for pipis!

The reasons for the decline may be many. Some anglers blame the activities of commercial fishing boats close to the shore, along with quotas that were too high. I suspect that pollution could not be without some significance. The outfalls of raw sewage onto coastlines must inevitably have some ecological reaction. The ecosystem of the ocean begins with the minute plankton organisms. Affect these, and in time, you affect each creature in the food chain.

Sea fish in the Arctic have been reported to have DDT residue buildup of alarming proportions, even though they may be many thousands of miles from areas where insecticides were used.

I suspect that Pollution has also impacted Snapper Fishing

Pollution is a process of destruction which can silently but effectively alter the whole ecology of an environment. Too often, we judge pollution by its visible effects, such as dead fish, and not by its often irreversible ecological effects. The decline around our coasts of the shellfish beds on which the snapper feed is another aspect which relates to these effects.

So the reason for the decline of snapper may not be too difficult to pinpoint. It makes the surfcaster’s lot a less happy one, and the task of catching snapper immeasurably harder. Yet for all that, some anglers can still catch snapper while others fail. Generally, a main requisite to snapper fishing is the distance of your cast. An ability to cast 100 metres or more is never wasted, under most conditions.

I know of a friend who manufactured his own rod from a tank aerial. It gave him a tremendous whip to his forward cast, which was long and usually beyond the breakers. Significantly, he consistently outscored other surfcasters.

While an ability to cast long distances is a great advantage under most conditions, it happens that a short cast brings success. One instance was where a friend had no success in the Sounds with a long cast, whereas his son, with a light rod and bait out only about 30 metres, caught a lovely 5-kilogram snapper. Such is the unpredictable nature of the fish!

In the Marlborough Sounds, pick the edge of a channel, or where two mud-flat channels meet.

Bait for Snapper

Picking the right bait for snapper is difficult. I have a preference for shellfish or crayfish. You have to tie it on, but it seems to be particularly appealing to snapper. Surfcasters in some areas swear by crayfish.

Kahawai, herring (yellow-eyed mullet), squid and trevally are others. One angler I know has a theory that when using a fish, the head is the best part. It is natural for a fish, such as a snapper, to swallow a small fish head first. The reason is that the spines of the dorsal fin lie flat as it is swallowed. By this theory, his favourite bait is a herring or spotty head, but a whole herring baited with the head to the fore of your rig is hard to beat.

“When straylining, nothing beats a whole fresh [New Zealand pilchard] dropped slowly down the berley trail.”

Running Rigs are the Best for Snapper Fishing

A running rig is almost a necessity for snapper. Such is the snapper’s inborn wariness that when it takes the bait, the line should run freely so there is no resistance to alert the fish. At times, snapper will take a bait, run a short distance with it and then drop it before again picking it up and setting off. Other times, they may grab savagely at the bait – almost ravenously.

Therefore, the timing of your strike is very important. Wait for the snapper to take off with your bait and listen for a steady scream of the reel before you begin, and firmly play the snapper to the shore. Limit your kill, don’t kill your limit!