Getting jacked for summer! BRISBANE
Bob Thornton
As the mercury climbs to a near intolerable level across the northern two thirds of the country, some of the toughest and nuttiest in the angling community come out to play. When we see their supreme casting skills, pimped out boats and seasoned angling ability on social media, it may seem like a hard club to break into.
60cm or so. Consequently, fish of this size in the creeks and rivers are considered a true prize. What this means for estuary anglers though, is that they’re essentially chasing a reef fish up a creek. The jack’s preference for heavy structure and protein-rich meat makes them a very tough adversary. Their canine teeth, bloodlike colouration and aggressive demeanour only add to their image as the toughest animal in the rivers. On top of this,
search for jacks, there’s much more to it than that. There are things that will bring these fish to an area, and many factors that influence the viability of the fishing. There are well-known systems such as the Nerang River on the Gold Coast and Baffle Creek near Bundaberg that are synonymous with mangrove jack. This certainly doesn’t mean the fishing is any less viable in the other systems around them, however. In fact, lesser-known rivers and creeks
concrete jungles. Some of the best habitat in these places is made of concrete and metal, with bridges, pontoons, retaining walls and any other artificial structure all great real estate. Tidal systems still unaffected by human development also harbour good jacks, and the natural structure in these places makes equally good habitat, however these areas are few and far between near our major population centres. As you venture north on the east coast, fewer people living around the water means there is less canals and the human infrastructure that go with it. Natural structure includes fallen timber, mangroves, rock bars, undercut banks, and really anything that interrupts the current and gives them a place to wait for food to drift by. It’s also worth mentioning that in the south, jacks will tend to seek out cleaner
Live baiting is a good way to secure your first jack, and although this isn’t Elliot’s first, it certainly won’t be his last. Photo courtesy of Simon Goldsmith. water with better visibility, and seem to turn up less in dirtier systems such as the Brisbane and Mary rivers. In the tropics, where a lot of
these predators. BAIT FISHING FOR JACKS Bait fishing for mangrove jack is an awesome way for
Live bait rig for mangrove jack Fixed stytofoam float 40lb braided mainline
Fly fishing is very effective but a rarely used method for jack fishing. Not all areas are suited to this technique, but it’s a good trick to have up your sleeve. Granted, bagging your first mangrove jack is no mean feat, but you certainly don’t need to be a swashbuckling fisher pro with all the gear and experience in the world. I will disclose early on that I am no jack expert. My infrequent jack trips have taken me all up and down the East Coast, but each time it seems I have to relearn almost everything from scratch. Because of this, I’ve caught my ‘first jack’ quite a few times, and now I want to help you do the same. Summer is when adventurous anglers are looking to bag their first red dog, so with all this in mind, let’s look at our target. JACK BIOLOGY Mangrove jack belong to a large family called lutjanidae, which also includes golden snapper (fingermark), Moses perch, red bass, red emperor, and many more around the world. Like all the members of this clan, jacks are a tough animal, and their fight for survival begins right at birth. Adult fish spawn around offshore reefs, and soon after the larvae migrate inshore to nearby estuaries, and sometimes even up into freshwater. Juvenile fish will spend the first several years or more feeding and growing in this environment, before eventually migrating back to the ocean. Tagging data shows that this migration back to their birthplace tends to happen when they reach around 8
DECEMBER 2022
they are well-known to snap their jaw open and shut (often referred to as ‘barking’) when they’re out of water. Anglers relishing a challenge seem drawn to not just jack fishing, but also to the fish themselves. And while they make awesome table fare, most choose to release all the jacks they land, more so out of respect than anything else. Like many structureorientated fish, they can sometimes take up residence on one snag pile for several years or more. There have been multiple instances of tagged jacks being caught repeatedly in one area, with one animal being landed 12 times! Don’t let this fool you though, jacks can be elusive quarry, especially in the southern limits of their range, but they make up for their lack of numbers in subtropical waters by being larger on average than their northern relatives. Regardless of what part of the coast they inhabit, though, they can generally be found in similar environments. Most jacks will prefer the intertidal estuary, so basically anywhere from the tidal limits and downstream to the system’s mouth. This isn’t a hard and fast rule though, with the freshwater and coastal headland environments also harbouring good jacks in certain places at certain times. FINDING JACKS NEAR YOU While any tidal system is a good starting point in your
can offer fantastic fishing at times thanks to less angling pressure. On the East Coast, these fish can be found from just south of Sydney in NSW all the way to the tip of Cape York and across the top. In WA they can be found down to about Kalbarri. East Coast jacks in southern waters, and especially around bigger metropolitan centres such as Sydney, Brisbane, Coffs Harbour, the Gold Coast, Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, are perfectly at home living among the
Swivel
30lb mono or fluorocarbon trace (80-100cm)
4/0 suicide hook
Ball sinker
80-120mm poddy mullet
The author’s preferred rig for live baiting.
Various species of trevally also make up a good portion of the by-catch, and their sizzling runs provide great entertainment between jacks.
systems are more stirred up (thanks mostly to larger tides), jacks can’t afford to be as picky, and will live in systems with less visibility. With that said, jacks in the tropics also seem to venture into the freshwater reaches more than their southern siblings. This is probably to do with the better clarity this environment offers. Anglers chasing jungle perch and sooty grunter often have run ins with freshwater jacks, and I’ve never heard of anyone complaining when this happens! In the top end and over on the west coast where estuaries have endured far less human interference, they will tend to hang out in the hidey holes provided by nature. With less people around these fish also don’t get targeted as often, and this combined with the generally greater numbers found in the north can result in some magic sessions on
a newcomer to nail their first one, but don’t think for a second that this is the ‘easy way’. Bait fishing for jacks takes preparation, dedication and skill. Jacks will respond to a huge variety of baits, live and dead, so to find a bait that works in your area you need to think about what they’re eating. A general rule that many bait soakers adhere to is that jacks in the tropics will happily eat dead baits, while further south live baits are often needed to get the desired result. Down south, jacks are massively outnumbered by other species, and a dead bait is more likely to attract scavengers like sharks, catfish and eels before a jack notices it. By-catch is still inevitable with live baits, but greatly reduced. LIVE BAITS Livies such as gar, mullet, legal whiting, herring and
