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KING FISH

Best time of the year: summer time, but can be found all year round
 
Bag limit  / size: 5 per person

Legal length: 65 cm

Weight: They vary from 3 to 18 Kg, the bigger one’s are around 25 Kg and occasionally they are caught between 30 – 40 kg

Depth: From 5 to 30 metres

Habitat: Kingfish can be found in  bays, along the coast to offshore islands,  reefs and pinnacles. 

Techniques:  When a located from the surface they can be bomb dived  from above or if none are in sight they can brought to the diver lying in wait on the bottom or midwater. They are curious  by nature and respond well to flashers and burley used together, but can also be used individually. The also respond very well to noise,  you can attract kingfish to you by banging the butt of your gun on the bottom or pinching your gun rubbers together, or even spearing a reef fish in the area can also work quite well when spearing in pairs.

Characteristics: The kingfish is the most common pelagic encountered. They are considered to be quite a powerful fish. During the first run the like to swim straight to the bottom trying to get the spear off their body, therefore it’s crucial to stop them from hitting the bottom. When they can’t be stopped from hitting the reef, they often bend and break spear shafts and also cut monofilament or reel lines causing damage & loss of your gear and fish. On big Kingfish a good holding shot in the head or spine is essential in securing  these fish.

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 SAMSON FISH

Best time of the year: Can be found all year round especially during the winter season in the mid north coast.
 
Bag limit: 5 per person in total combined with amberjacks

Legal Length: Any

Weight: Although these fish can grow up to 50 Kg in other parts of Australia, in NSW they vary from 3 to 20 Kg, occasionally they are caught up to 25 Kg.

Depth: From 5 to 30 metres

Habitat: Samson can be found in  bays, along the coast to offshore islands,  reefs and pinnacles. 

Techniques:  Lying in wait on the bottom or midwater can be one of the most efficient techniques to bring schools or individual fish to the diver. They like flashers and burley used together, but can also be used individually to bring them in.

Characteristics: The Samson is the most powerful of the seriola family. Like the kingfish the same criteria has to be applied. They are considered to be quite a powerful fish . During the first run the like to swim straight to the bottom trying to get the spear off their body, therefore it’s crucial to stop them from hitting the bottom. When they can’t be stopped from hitting the reef, they often bend and break spear shafts and also cut monofilament or reel lines causing damage & loss of your gear and fish. On big Samson fish a good holding shot in the head or spine is essential in securing  these fish.

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 AMBERJACK

Best time of the year: All year round

Bag limit: 5 per person in total combined with Samson fish

Legal Length: Any

Weight: In NSW they vary from 3 to 5 Kg anything up to 10 Kg is considered big .

Depth: From 1 to 15 metres

Habitat: Amberjacks can be found around offshore islands, reefs and pinnacles and occasionally along the coast..

Techniques:  Lying in wait on the bottom or midwater can be one of the most efficient techniques to bring schools or individual fish to the diver, although majority of the times they just swim up to the diver whilst on the surface. They like flashers and burley used together, but can also be used individually to bring them in. The also respond very well to noise,  you can attract amberjack to you by banging the butt of your gun on the bottom or pinching your gun rubbers together, or even spearing a reef fish in the area can also work quite well when spearing in pairs.

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 GIANT TREVALLY

Best time of the year: February To April, but can be found all year round

Bag limit: 20 per person

Legal Length: Any

Weight: These fish have been speared in Northern NSW up to 65 Kg, the average size is approximately 20 kg.

Depth: From 2 to 30 metres

Habitat: GT can be found in from very shallow reef areas to deep offshore islands, reefs and pinnacles far north nsw

Techniques:  Lying in wait on the bottom or midwater can be one of the most efficient techniques to bring schools or individual fish to the diver. They like flashers and burley used together, but can also be used individually to bring them in.

Characteristics: the GT is the biggest growing of the trevally species and  the most powerful. These fish are extremely powerful and are responsible in bending shafts like spaghetti or breaking them altogether. Using stainless cable instead of monofilament is definitely a good idea with these fish. Like all powerful fish a good holding shot in  the head or spine is essential in securing  these fish. Be prepared to loose gear.

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 COBIA

Best time of the year:  From November to June
 
Bag limit: 20

Legal Length: Any

Weight: These fish have been speared in Northern NSW up to 40 Kg, the average size is 15 kg.

Depth: From 1 to 30 metres

Habitat: offshore islands, reefs, pinnacles and ¬along the coast.

Techniques: Bomb diving, lying in wait on the bottom or midwater . They often swim with big stingrays or big sharks, so it’s a good idea to keep eye out when you see either one of these two. Flashers also work quite well with them.

Characteristics:  At first sight they appear to be small sharks from above, their shape, colour and the way they swim through the water sometimes makes them harder to identify. However what gives them away is the bright white lines along the side of their body and the shape of the tail that is very different from a shark. If you think it’s a small bronze whaler look again. When you spot a big sting ray from above it definitely pays to dive near it to see if any cobia is underneath it, as they often try to hide under them. Can also be laying stationary on the sand

Shots to the head should be avoided as its quite solid , preferably just behind  the head. From when they are hit the fight is dogged until finally subdued. Care should be taken of the small dorsal spines. Even on the surface when they appear to be  finished they can still come alive again, therefore great caution should considered when trying to subdue the fish.

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 BARRACUDA

Best time of the year:  Summer
 
Bag limit: 20

Legal Length: Any

Weight: From 5 to 22 kg in NSW, up to 30 kg in other parts of  Australia

Depth: From 5 to 20 metres

Habitat:  Offshore reefs, islands and pinnacles

Techniques:  Bomb diving or lying in wait on the bottom or midwater. They often swim in big schools or alone when bigger in size. Don’t make eye contact

Characteristics: Can be found stationary in mid water. An important thing  to remember is to keep your hand away from their razor sharp teeth.

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JEWFISH

Best time of the year:  Winter time around mid north coast on wards, in summer time around Newcastle and further south.

Bag limit: 5 per person

Legal Length: 45 cm , only 2 fish over 70 cm

Weight: From 5 to 40 kg 

Depth: From 1 to 30 metres

Habitat:  Can be found in sandy gutters or  channels from 1 metre under white water to 30 metres deep. Jew fish also live in large open caves with two entrances. They have also have been seen in the open  around drop offs or  even in open gravel or sandy bottom. If diving a reef edge and you encounter kingfish and bait fish checkout the bottom as they can be where the kingfish are. Jewfish can be found around bays / estuaries, along the coastline, pinnacles, offshore reefs and islands.

Techniques:  Bomb diving, snooping in shallow white water, or a known Jew fish cave. Silence is the key as they can spook quite easily.

Characteristics: Jew fish have two features that distinguish them to a diver. One is the diamond dots along their lateral line which predominantly stand out in low light situations. The other is the  croaking noise they make when schooling, which can be an good  indication that they are in the area .

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YELLOWFIN TUNA

SOUTHERN BLUEFIN TUNA

Best time of the year:  All year round
 
Legal Length / Bag limit: 90cm or above 2 in total of all tuna species ( including albacore, Southern Blue fin tuna, Big eye)

Weight: From 5 to 150 kg 

Depth: From 2 to 30 metres

Habitat: yellow and blue fin is quite rare to encounter as they often swim in the open ocean where most divers don’t dive. Occasionally they are found along the coast, offshore reefs, islands and pinnacles.
 
Techniques:  Bomb diving or lying in wait in the first 15 metres with a combination of flashers  and burley or even creating a long  burley trail and jump in the water when they are seen feeding near the boat.

Characteristics: Both yellow and blue fin tuna swim very fast and can be very wary keeping a safe distance from the diver in blue water. In these situations a big powerful gun is mandatory.

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BONITO

Best time of the year: summer
 
Legal Length: Any

Bag limit: 10 per person

Weight: From 0.5 to 6 kg 

Depth: From 5 to 20 metres

Habitat: Bays, along the coast, offshore reefs, islands and pinnacles.
 
Techniques:  Bomb diving or lying in wait in the first 15 metres .

Characteristics: Bonito always swim in schools from a few to hundreds, very rarely swim on their own.

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MACTUNA

Best time of the year:  All year round
 
Legal Length: Any

Bag limit: 20 per person

Weight: From 4 to 8 kg 

Depth: From 2 to 20 metres

Habitat: Offshore reefs, islands and pinnacles and occasionally along the coast
 
Techniques:  Bomb diving or lying in wait in the first 15 metres .
 
Characteristics: Mactuna always swim in very big schools and the shots are most of the time at the end of the range. They are also known as a great shark attractant, for this reason divers often choose not to shoot them. For their  size they fight very hard.

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DOLPHIN FISH

Best time of the year:  October to May
 
Legal Length : 60 cm, only 1 over 110 cm

Bag limit: 10 per person

Weight: From 2 to 30 kg 

Depth: From 1 to 10 metres

Habitat: They like swimming in the first 10 metres of water under fad’s (Fish aggregation devices) anchored between  80 to 150 metres of water or can also be found on any large debris floating out wide off the coast. Divers have also encountered them in the open ocean away from fads or floating debris.
 
Techniques:  Bomb diving or lying in wait just below the surface.

Characteristics: They generally swim in schools and being shy fish they like keeping the distance, therefore most of the time the shots are at the end of the range. With dolphin fish occasionally marlin swims in for a  feed, therefore keeping an eye out for that big marlin out there it’s a good idea.

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SNAPPER

Best time of the year: All year round, especially from March to October
 
Legal Length : 30 cm

Bag limit: 10 per person

Weight: From 0.5 to 13 kg 

Depth: From 3 to 30 metres

Habitat: Along the coast, off shore reefs, islands and pinnacles

Techniques:  There is  several techniques to hunt snapper, and most of them involve the use burley.
1) burley a few small pieces and let the fish eat it  without trying to chase it. After a while the fish will get a good taste for the burley and will start to think the diver does not  pose a threat.  After a few lots of burley dive down carefully and try to intersect the fish on the way to the burley with a long shot.
2) Leave  big chunks of burley on the bottom that they cannot swallow or swim away with and dive far enough away from the burley  and crawl within spearing range, using weeds and boulders for cover.
These techniques of course don’t always work. Sometimes you may do everything right and snapper will still  not come in range or even show any interest in the burley. When found in caves they can be easier to spear, although silence and stealth is still mandatory.

Characteristics: One of the most difficult fish to spear if not the hardest to spear along the NSW coast.” Occasionally” the can be very easy fish to spear, however that’s rare. The difficulty in catching snapper is what makes hunting this fish exciting. Snapper like schooling together with bigger individuals, 6 kg plus snapper often swim on their own.

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SPANISH MACKEREL

Best time of the year: December to June
 
Legal Length : 75 cm

Bag limit: 5 in total including spotted mackerel

Weight: From 6 to 40 kg 

Depth: From 5 to 30 metres

Habitat: Anywhere from along the coast to offshore islands, reefs, pinnacles.

Techniques:  Lying in wait in midwater in the first 15 metres or on the bottom. Flashers together with burley can work a treat with all mackerels.

Characteristics: They generally swim alone or in small schools. They have very soft flesh and are prone to rip quite easily, therefore the best area to shoot  them is between the dorsal and the anal fin for a better holding shot. In the initial run they take off extremely fast and give up not long after that. An important thing  to remember is to keep your hands away from their razor sharp teeth.

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 WAHOO

Best time of the year:  January to June
 
Legal Length : Any

Bag limit: 5 per person

Weight: From 5 to 50 kg 

Depth: From 1 to 15 metres

Habitat: Deep water on the edges of  offshore pinnacles / reefs, around fads and in open blue water.

Techniques:  As these fish tend to like clear blue water, the diver can see them approaching from the surface in blue water, therefore a bomb dive or lying in wait in midwater seams to be the most efficient techniques used. It’s important during the midwater dive to try and look as small as possible in the water by pulling your gun and knees in to appear less threatening to this shy and cautious fish. Flashers and burley also work very well with Wahoo.

Characteristics: They generally swim alone or in small schools. They have very soft flesh and are prone to rip quite easily therefore the best area to shoot  them is between the dorsal and the anal fin for a better holding shot. The Wahoo is the second fastest fish in the ocean capable to reach  100 km/h. These fish are quite powerful capable to pull big floats down quite easily, therefore all rigs, monofilament joints and knots should be up to scratch. Like the all mackerels keep your hands away from their razor sharp teeth.

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BLACK MARLIN

STRIPED MARLIN

Best time of the year:  November to May
 
Legal Length : Any

Bag limit: 1 of each specie per person

Weight: From 30 to 200 kg 

Depth: From 1 to 15 metres

Habitat: Black marlin can be found just about anywhere. Has been caught along the coast, offshore pinnacles / reefs, around fads, in open blue water to bays. Striped Marlin tends to be more of an offshore specie.

Techniques: Marlin is normally encountered during your coastal or offshore dive. Generally if sighted from the surface a bomb dive or lying in wait in mid water might be all you have to do to spear one of these. Other different techniques is to troll lures or teasers offshore or simply using flashers to bring one in.

Characteristics: Rated as the holy grail by a lot of  spearfishermen, Marlin is amongst one of the most powerful pelagics due to their big mass and long tail. The average weight of a black is around  70 to 120 kg. When chasing big Marlin needless to say a powerful big gun is needed as they stay out of range in blue water. The length of the fight to land one of these can last a while, therefore great attention should be put to all your rigs, floats, monofilament joints etc.

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SAILFISH

Best time of the year:  April to May
 
Legal Length : Any

Bag limit: 2 per person

Weight: From 20 to 70 kg 

Depth: From 1 to 15 metres

Habitat:  Sailfish is quite rare to encounter along the NSW north coast. Has been caught by divers on offshore pinnacles / reefs / islands and in open blue water.

Techniques:  Generally if sighted from the surface a bomb dive or lying in wait in mid water might all you have to do to spear one of these. Other efficient technique is to troll lures or teasers offshore or simply using flashers to bring one in.

Characteristics: The fastest fish in the ocean, capable to reach 120 km/h. When  feeding the whole body with it’s big dorsal sail  can light up with magnificent colours. Another unique feature of this bill fish is the very long pelvic fins.

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