Any experience with peacock bass?

[bullimiami]

Summer is here and thats when the peacocks are happiest
Does anyone have any experience catching them on a fly?

For those of you who dont know about peacock bass and south florida...

http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/2730/florida.htm

florida is awash in invading fish

http://floridafisheries.com/fishes/non-native.html#peacock

[Stan Wright]

Flys for peacock bass...... the only way to go.
A friend of mine just gave me some Yack hair. It's kind of trans lucent when it gets wet. He adds a little flash-a-boo for flash and color. Boy did the fish love it.

I like the keel hook because it's almost weedless. We've been using #6 bass worm hooks lately. They make great streamer flys and are also pretty weedless too. White is a good color, Also try chartruse or yellow or orange over white.
Add a little red near the head to represent bleading gills.

I also use a lot of maraboo. It looks good in the water and lays down flat when casting. I have some pictures on my web slit. Hawaii Bass Fishing.

Clouser minnow type flys work great, but are not that weedless. We are experimenting with popping bugs. (if they like surface lures, why not poppers?) I've had great luck with a small popping bug and a sinking tip fly line. The popper runs just under the surface and has a wild wiggle that really drove the peacock bass wild.

Don't worry, when the peacock bass turn on they will take anything.

Aloha,
Stan

[PanamaJack]

I'd similarly concur with Stan's closing comment - Don't worry, when the peacock bass turn on they will take anything.

Certainly in Lake Gatun, the flooded area that surrounds the Panama Canal, they're very agressive and will take anything although Deceiver patterns seemed to work best with the bigger fish. The smaller fish would take anything and particularly gave wonderful strikes on surface poppers.

The only other place I've fished for them (and I suspect these were not 'true' Peacocks, the halo round the tail spot was missing) is a lake to the north of Belize City (Belize) near to the ruins of a Mayan city - from recollection a connection with crocodiles. Similarly it really didn't matter what you threw at them. But I guess these fish are somewhat untutored to those you target in the Florida waterways.
Kindest Regards
Dave West
Chairman - Sportfishing Club of the British Isles
www.scbi.org.uk

[Stan Wright]

Just read a great Peacock Bass story in the latest Fly Tyer magazine. I've already tried some of the flys and techniques they use in Miami, and it works great. One of these days I'll make it to Florida and fish the canals. Nothing more exciting than seeing a peacock bass charge a fly. and that clear water must make it even better.

Aloha,
Stan

[bullimiami]

Im going to go find the magazine.