The Peacock Bass Blog

Weekend Conversation: Jim: “I caught a

peacockbass — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 20:40:10 +0000

Weekend Conversation:
Jim: “I caught a twenty pound salmon last week.”
Fred: “Were there any witnesses?”
Jim: “There sure were. If there hadn’t been, it would have been forty pounds!”

Fish of the Week: Peacock Bass – Cichla Nigromaculata

peacockbass — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 16:35:08 +0000

Our “Fish of the Week” is Peacock Bass – Cichla nigromaculata, one of the newly described (2006) species of Cichla (ID key C. nigromaculata).

The Cichla nigromaculata possesses three relatively narrow and short dark vertical bars and two lighter bars in between the darker ones. No markings are present on operculum. It has an overall dark body coloration, shading from greenish/gold below to black dorsally. A bluish cast overlies the body color. Its upper fins are dark and its lower fins are bluish. Cichla nigromaculata’s depth to length ratio is approximately 30 percent and has approximately 80 lateral line scales. It is most similar to Cichla monoculus.

The Cichla nigromaculata can be found in the river basins of the Rio Orinoco, Rio Casiquiare and Rio Negro in Venezuela and Brazil. They’re most commonly found in lagoons, especially floodplain lagoons (seasonally isolated/connected), although they can be found sporadically in the channel.

From a report by Dr. Stuart Willis:

“We fished for these all through the upper Orinoco and Casiquiare, mostly in the Mavaca and Pamoni. They are most common in lagoons, especially floodplain lagoons (seasonally isolated/connected), although they can be found sporadically in the channel. These don’t show any particular observable habitat use differences to C. monoculus. We caught these on weedless spoons and in-line spinnerbaits.”

Peacock Bass - Cichla Nigromaculata

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32-Pound Payara

peacockbass — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 19:12:59 +0000

Amazon highland rivers are home to big, aggressive payara like this 32 pound trophy taken on a Rapala CD 18:

32-Pound Payara

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A Little Peacock!

peacockbass — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 16:49:34 +0000

The highlands rivers have so much variety that even Peacock Bass are part of the fun. This 4-lb. Cichla Ocellaris took a fly meant for a Payara:

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Sign Up For Our Free eNewsletter

peacockbass — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 16:30:10 +0000

Stay on top of everything Acute Angling and Amazon peacock bass fishing by signing up for our free e-newsletter. We’ll keep you updated on company news, fishing trends and cool things we’ve come across in the Amazon.

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Photo – Releasing a 200 Pound Piraiba

peacockbass — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 18:26:32 +0000

We use great care releasing big cats and rarely take them completely out of the water. This 200 pound piraiba was safely released.

200 Pound Piraiba

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Fish of the Week: Catfish – Sorubim

peacockbass — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 17:10:01 +0000

Sorubim

Our “Fish of the Week” is Catfish – Sorubim, which is a beautiful species sporting an elegant pattern of hieroglyphic black markings on a silver grey background dorsally and stark white ventrally. The common name sorubim is used for several similarly shaped species in the genus. Body markings, typical habitat and maximum size differ. P. tigrinum is commonly encountered by anglers in Amazon lowland, highland and Guyana shield fisheries.

The Sorubim is distinguished by its flattened head, elongate body and large terminal mouth. Its silvery gray upper body with heiroglyphic markings dorsally, and tiger stripes laterally, also set it apart. Sorubim’s fin markings continue from the body, evolving into spots toward margins. The silver gray on its dorsum changes abruptly to white on its ventral sides, as well as its abdomen. Specimens up to one meter in length and more than 100 pounds have been reported. The genus contains eight recognised species, and although all are similarly elongate, many are uniquely marked and have separate ranges. Common names include Barred Shovelnose (English); sorubim, suribim, cachara (local); and Bagre rayado.

This catfish can be found in Brazil, Peru, Guyana, Ecuador, Bolivia, Suriname, Columbia, Venezuela and Argentina, particularly in the Amazon, Orinoco, Essequibo, Corantijn and Parana drainages and river basins. They usually occupy lotic (moving water) environments in blackwater river systems. Primarily feeding on fishes, P. fasciatumis are readily encountered with cut bait on shallow sandbars in river channels. Although mostly an evening and nocturnal feeder, anglers are often surprised by large sorubim attacking artificial lures in open water at any time of day. The current IGFA record is 35 pounds, 10 ounces.

In addition to being a great angler’s target, the barred sorubim is a pleasant adjunct to any fishery. Its habit of attacking artificial lures and then fighting like whiskered tuna, makes it endearing to peacock bass anglers and catfishermen alike. In most high gradient fisheries sorubim can be targeted by anglers at evening time. They tend to congregate and forage at the edges of shallow beaches with nearby drop-offs to deeper water. Small live bait or pieces of cut bait are equally effective when cast onto the beach and allowed to drift naturally to the nearby drop-off. An effective rig consists of a 10/0 to 14/0 circle hook (or smaller J hook) with a wire leader and relatively light sinker (approx. 1 oz.), enough to keep it down while still allowing the current to slowly carry it. The take is usually quite forceful. Once hooked, sorubim will fight in open water with strong runs and surprising stamina.

Pintado

Pintado - Psuedoplatystoma corruscans - up to 1.5 meter
This larger catfish is found outside the Amazon in the Pantanal and the Sao Francisco and Parana river basins
(Illustration from “Peixes do Pantanal” – Embrapa – poster)

Pintado

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The Amazon Sky

peacockbass — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 19:25:09 +0000

The beautiful Amazon sky

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Jenny Schools “The Fish Finder!”

peacockbass — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 13:36:48 +0000

World champion peacock bass angler Steve Townson joins Jenny Reiss of Acute Angling on a Blackwater Explorer trip. In this episode Steve gives Jenny some pointers on peacock bass fishing and Jenny thanks him by catching the bigger fish. To learn more about peacock bass fishing, visit http://www.acuteangling.com.

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Fall Trips Still Available But Going Fast!

peacockbass — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 15:12:02 +0000

We have several exotic fishing trips still available for the fall. Space is limited and they’re going fast, so make sure you schedule the fishing trip of a lifetime before they’re sold out! You can do so by visiting our interactive trip finder.

(This could be you!)

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