Snappers – School of Fish

Fishing for Golden Snapper or Fingermark Bream…Fingermark or Golden Snapper are highly prized among fishing community for their looks, taste and fighting ability. We just call them fingermark because the dark blotch on the upper flank. Fingermark can grow to around 90 to 100cm and fight astonishingly hard.

Like Mangrove Jack, Red Emperor and Papuan Black Bass, Fingermark is an aggressive, broad shouldered fish with prominent canine teeth. They can smash your lure so hard and has a fearsome reputation. Learning biology of species can be boring and scientific, but reality is, knowing makes the difference between lucky catch and anglers that target them with consistent success. It helps with sustainability of fish species as well.

A slow growing species, Finermarks can live to 30 years and becomes sexual maturity from 6-8 years of age @ over 50cm.

Vulnerability to over fishing…Interestingly less than 10% of of fingermark- golden snapper catches result from commercial fishing. So overfishing is a recreational fishing issue. To preserve stocks, we limit harvest and mortality of golden snapper. Set catch and possession limits. Cease catch and release fishing once possession limit is reached and move elsewhere to target other species.

How to catch golden snapper/fingermark – I like to use the DOA Shad Tails combination with DOA coloured Jig Heads, DOA Shrimps 3” or 4” and DOA Crabs. Trolling & Live baiting works just as well but the ultimate for us is to use our light tackles with our DOA soft plastics. Boat anglers believed its best to fish Fingermarks at night but we’ve had great sessions during daylight hours. But, at the ponds these Fingermarks bite day & night though you need to find them and entice them with your varied retrieval techniques. With the proven lures and catch reports @ School of Fish, Singapore, you will be with an advantage and can fish with the confidence of the shape, action, colours of the lures available @ http://schooloffish.com.sg

When we first started to use the DOA soft plastic shrimps, it was more of a novelty and trying something that I have not seen anglers use in the local angling scene. These DOA Shrimps caught my eye when we were already using DOA Shads regularly and we then realised that the founder first invented the Shrimp lure and the 3″ Shrimps were in fact his favourite lure which he still uses for his own fishing. With a handful to try, we were very excited by the hard hits we were getting on these DOA Shrimps and soon we realise that these being creature baits are seen by the predators as hard to come by and may require them to hit on it harder inorder to catch them for food. The soft plastic Shrimp lure soon became my essential in my tackle bag and I soon develop my own retrieval techniques and speed of retrieve. I pay extreme attention as I feel the Shrimp moving across the small rocks at the bottom of the pond, just anticipating the hit and I very often get “whacked” as I come close to the bank of the pond. This is a fact that makes it all that important that I should sit down close to the bank and do a very slow retrieve right to the edge of my retrieval area.
Many times, we have said…”if you think your retrieval is slow…slow down some more”. I always remind myself that these Shrimps by nature are escape artist, if it is too far away or retrieved too fast, the predators that we are targeting to catch is very unlikely to want to exert the energy…so retrieve like you want to be eaten is always what I would tell fellow lurer. Don’t work your lure at speeds that the predators find it a waste of energy. Start to think like a predator and at the same time behave like a prey.
Most fishes ARE NOT CHOOSY about what they eat…that’s what people say But as fishermen we know that with the Unfair Advantage of D.O.A “farmed baitfish added” into the soft plastic Shrimp lures to entice the Snappers, we do have an advantage.
How to maximise your chances is to change colours every now & then just to know what will score better for the day. Believe me its more than science and we all fishermen know it is. Shop @ School of Fish, Singapore online shop @ http://schooloffish.com.sg

Tag: Snappers

Fishing Fingermark or Golden Snappers

Catching Snappers with DOA soft plastic Shrimp Lures