John Davies from Perth is up on holidays with a few mates targeting all species. John has never caught a billfish and usually drives the boat. However, whilst they were trolling off the lighthouse John was on strike and caught his first marlin. As you can imagine, he was pretty chuffed. About fifteen minutes later John decided to try and catch a striped tuna from the acres of schools out off the west side. He grabbed a 6kg outfit and attached a small Christmas tree lure. Within seconds he was on, but it wasn’t a tuna that grabbed the tiny lure, but another black marlin! Thirty minutes later they landed the fish that was estimated through measurements of short length to be 50kg. In total the crew tagged one sail, two marlin and raised a few more. Apparently, it sounds like things are shaping up for the international billfish and Gamex comps coming up!
John Davies black marlin
Would you like to claim a world record fish? Did you know that the IGFA (International Game Fishing Association) now recognises species that are caught and measured? That’s right, you can now release fish and still be able to claim a world record. This has only just been passed, which means there are up to thirteen eligible species on their list that can be claimed for world record status in Exmouth alone. My suggestion is get in now, because there is no better time to get your name in the world record book!
Plus they have recently halved the cost of membership (now US$15) and with the Australian Dollar so good against the $US, it’s even more of a reason to join this fishing body to claim records, gain information on rec fishing and work together for conservation and understanding of recreational fishing issues globally. You can also get an app on your phone that will help you identify species, then search for vacant, pending, and standing World Records. For further information see Matt Gates, the Northwest IGFA representative, at 3 Maley Street, Exmouth or go to the website www.igfa.org
The spangled emperor have been quite thick around the Westside, along with sharks and plenty of birds. Sadly, it all coincides with the hatching of small turtles that make easy meals for predators. Baits, surface poppers and shallow diving lures have been working well on the spangled emperor who are hungry and competitive for a feed.