You’ve probably seen seasoned fishermen showcase their prized Wahoo catch on television. Whether for their great taste or their presence in all major oceans, wahoo fishing is becoming more and more popular.
It’s not the easiest fish to catch, and approaching with conventional ‘tried and tested’ strategies may not bear fruit. That’s why today we’ll teach you everything there is to know about wahoo fishing, so let’s start from the top:
Wahoo Identification
Wahoo is a moderately large fish that can grow as tall as 8 feet. An average adult is roughly 4-5 feet tall, though. They are riddled with white stripes and normally have black smudges on their fins and lower body.
Big eyes, jaw, and teeth are the main characteristics by which you’ll recognize this fish. It also has two dorsal fins that enable it to wade through the water with ease. On average, a wahoo fish weighs between 15 to 25 pounds while the heaviest recorded wahoo weighs 103 pounds.
Where to Fish for Wahoo?
Visiting any of the listed locations searching for wahoo will yield better or worse results depending on whether the fish are scrounging for food, breeding, or migrating. Their patterns of migration are fairly unclear, although they frequent tropical, as well as subtropical regions more.
One of the first things you should know about Wahoo is that it frequents warmer waters. The fact that its population is scattered across the Indian, Pacific, as well as Atlantic oceans, means that you’ll have a good chance of finding some in any of said regions; however, it’s also important to keep tabs on water temperature and weather if you want to find more than a few.
They will rarely go below 500 and almost never below 1,000 feet. Most of the time, wahoo fish live and hunt between 200 and 400 feet.
Wahoo Group Size
Wahoo is among the harder fish you can hunt for, as it doesn’t have a habit of living in groups. If they’re not alone searching for prey, they can form groups no larger than six fish. Predators by nature, even if they do form small groups, may quickly abandon them when food becomes scarce.
Why is Wahoo Hard to Catch?
Beginner fishermen may be puzzled at why catching wahoo is a challenge to even some of the most experienced professionals. The main reasons why Wahoo is a hard catch include:
Bullet-fast speeds
Wahoo is among the quickest fish across the world and is able to reach as much as 50 miles per hour within seconds. Their tall, slender bodies are naturally resistant to water pressure, which has minimal impact on their staggering speeds.
Challenges with Live Baits
Wahoo has a fairly strict diet that mainly comprises porcupine fish, herring, and butterfish. When they have no other option available, wahoo will hunt squid and larger prey.
Razor-sharp Teeth
This fish has a line of teeth as sharp as needles that can easily devour rip through your live baits without touching the hook. Even if you manage to catch one, handling a live wahoo is very dangerous and should be treated with utmost care and patience.
Brute Strength
It’s easy to mistake a wahoo for a super-sized Spanish mackerel – a species of striped fish that produce a glow similar to wahoo. Unlike mackerel, the wahoo is remarkably strong and can snap a weaker fishing rod if given the chance.
Wahoo Fishing Tactics
Now that you know how this fish species live and think, it’s time to discuss some of the most efficient tactics at at catching some wahoo with your wahoo fishing tackle
Spread Outriggers
By far, the most efficient wahoo fishing tactic is spreading four to six lure-bait combos, depending on how much your ship can support. Keep the speed at approximately fourteen knots, so that you can troll effectively.
Given their solitary nature, you may end up catching something else should you use less than four baits. Since their migratory patterns aren’t fully explored yet, you may pass on an opportunity of catching this fish should you go much slower or faster.
Wahoo with Planer Boards
If you aren’t too confident in your high-speed trolling ability, you may want to get some space between your vessel and your prey. Wahoos are predators by nature and have keen awareness regarding danger; despite not being the smartest species alive, there is a chance that they may simply ignore your downriggers.
If your eyesight isn’t great, you may want to get a pair of binoculars to observe the planers more conveniently.
Jigging
If you’re boarding a small fishing vessel and don’t have the luxury to set up multiple rods, jigging is the next best thing you can do to catch wahoo. Essentially, this technique is about simulating fish movement with a fish bait, making it more believable, and hence more attractive to your prey.
Again, due to the scarcity and dispersion of wahoo as a species, there is always a chance that some other fish may get hooked instead.
Fishing with Live Baits
Knowing wahoo’s diet, you can use live porcupine fish, herring, and butterfish as bait. The efficiency of this approach mainly depends on the activity and presence of these species in the waters where you plan to fish for wahoo.
While wahoo may opt to hunt squid or larger fish when hungry, they’re most likely to go the easier route when hungry, which is in this case, your live herring, butterfish, or porcupine fish bait.
Conclusion
Wahoo fishing is tremendously exciting, but you can be sure that it will test your patience and preparedness. You may experience failure with any of said tactics, so it may be a good idea to alternate between them from time to time.
Remember that wahoo is both remarkably strong and swift; equip your sturdiest rods and lines. It can snap out of sight in moments while larger individuals can even pull an average-sized human into water. Catching a wahoo is a uniquely rewarding experience, and we hope that this guide helped you achieve it.
We hope that this brief guide was helpful to you and that you have learned something new today on wahoo fishing. Make sure you are staying safe in these times we are all going through and have a good one, guys!
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