Chasing Unicorns

CHASING UNICORNS

targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

St a rlo l ift s t he l id o n w ha t c ou ld w el l b e t he hot te st te c h n iq u e y et d ev elo p e d fo r c a t c hi n g ov e r - s i ze d d u sk y f la t he a d o n l u re s i n sk i n ny w a te r … I f y ou c ha s e b ig l i za rd s , o r y ou ’ d l ik e t o , y ou s i m ply c a n ’ t a ffo rd n ot t o re a d t hi s o n e !

CHASING UNICORNS By Steve ‘Starlo’ Starling

lathead of one sort or another are consistently placed in any top five listing of Australia’s favourite recreational fishing targets. This is especially true along the eastern seaboard: from sub-tropical Queensland to Victoria’s South Gippsland.

While there are many species of flathead living in our waters, it’s the dusky (Platycephalus fuscus) that’s king along the east coast, and with good reason. Duskies are not only abundant and widespread, they’re also the largest members of the extensive flathead clan. In this feature, I plan to share with you every tiny detail and subtle nuance of the most effective method I have ever used for specifically targeting really big flathead on lures, especially in shallow water. I certainly don’t claim to have invented this technique. But I have adapted and refined it to suit the places where I fish, and the ways I most like to catch flatties. The system I’ve settled on—a system for consistently finding and hooking flathead over 75 cm in length—works incredibly well for me, and I believe it will also work for you!

Make no mistake, big flathead are peak predators. Their behaviour is quite different to that of smaller fish.

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

THE BIGGEST FLATHEAD Compared with many fish species, dusky flathead grow reasonably quickly, typically reaching 30 cm and more after just a year or two of life. However, there’s a distinct difference in growth rates between males and females, especially following that first year (and no, they don’t change sex like some other fish). Put simply, female dusky flathead grow faster and live longer than males. Females dusky flathead up to at least 16 years of age have been recorded, while the longest-lived male yet to be scientifically aged was only around 11 years old. For this reason, males rarely exceed a length of 60 cm. In other words, all dusky flathead over 65 cm or so in length are definitely females. (If you’d like to read more on the science of dusky flathead biology, go here.

Dusky flathead are capable of topping a metre in length and weighing as much as 9 or even 10 kg. So, just how big can female dusky flathead potentially grow, given a long and food-rich life? This is a subject of much conjecture, myth and occasionally some rather fierce debate. What we know for certain is that dusky flathead are capable of topping a metre in length and weighing as much as 9 or even 10 kg. Just how far over that magic metre mark they might push is where things become a little foggy. Some of the scientific modeling indicates that they could, theoretically, attain lengths of 120 cm (1.2 m). There’s an awful lot of loose talk (especially on social media) about 1.3 to 1.5 m flatties… fish that are claimed to weigh 15 kg or more. But there’s precious little in the way of hard evidence to categorically prove the existence of such giants. Truth is, genuine metre-long flathead are far less abundant than some folks would have us believe. Consider this: the Gold Coast Flathead Classic has been staged every spring for a quarter of a century, with literally thousands of duskies caught, measured and released each September (5,669 of them in the CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

2017 event alone!). Yet, in all those years and across tens of thousands of flatties pulled from one of the more productive systems for the species by some of the country’s best flathead anglers, there has never been a single, genuine, metre-long flattie recorded in the event! Not one. Nada. Zilch. Zip. Zero. These days it usually takes a fish in excess of 90 cm to pick up the trophy for longest flathead at the annual Gold Coast Classic, and genuine crocodiles up to 98 cm have been measured in the past. But the metre mark remains unbroken after 25 years. Remember this bit of trivia next time your excitable mate starts mouthing off about all those “metrelong” flathead he’s seen, hooked or caught.

SO, HOW BIG IS “BIG”?

I’m certainly not saying that metre-long dusky flathead don’t exist. They do, and a handful are caught, properly measured and documented each year. But they’re about as common as unicorns. Not only that, but each centimetre over the magic metre mark makes an already rare critter just that much rarer. The very biggest flatties I’ve heard of being accurately measured (on a brag mat) in recent years (not guesstimated, or roughly measured against a rod, or along the side of a boat) were around 105 to 108 cm in length. Trust me, those are huge flathead. Most of us will never see a flattie of those dimensions in the flesh, let alone be lucky enough to find ourselves connected to one. By the way, as an interesting aside, it amazes me how many people confuse 102 cm with 1.2 m, or 104 cm with 1.4 m, especially when writing lengths down or posting them on-line. Obviously, those are very different things: 102 cm is 1.02 m, not 1.2 m, and 104 cm is 1.04 m, not 1.4 m. Pull out a tape measure and check the massive differences between the “real” measurements and the wrongly transcribed ones. I may be wrong, but I reckon this all-too-common typographic or mathematical error is probably behind a lot of the unsubstantiated reports of flathead big enough to eat small dogs and scare children out of the water. Anyway, let’s agree that one metre is the Holy Grail benchmark for dusky flathead… the pot of gold we all desire, but which very few of us will ever be fortunate enough to attain. It’s right up there alongside a 15 kg snapper, a 65 cm bass, or a 3 kg-plus bream… It’s a prize we rightly daydream about. And while most of us will probably never see, let alone land, a true metre-long lizard, the good news is that overall numbers of 75 to 95 cm

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

Jo with a 90-plus unicorn pulled from 60 cm of water on an over-sized, un-weighted soft plastic.

LEFT

duskies appear to be on the rebound in many of our east coast estuaries (for reasons I’ll look at later). These are genuinely big flatties in my book, and there’s probably never been a better time in living memory to get out there and find a few, especially using the method I’m going to share with you in this feature!

One metre is the Holy Grail benchmark for dusky flathead…

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

TO CATCH A UNICORN There are lots of ways to catch big flathead (and let’s agree that we’ll call anything over 75 or 80 cm “big”, for the sake of this exercise). A surprising amount of whopper flatties fall to a humble frozen prawn or pilchard bait being soaked by a casual, weekend angler. Even more big lizards succumb to live poddy mullet or similar offerings. On the lure fishing front, soft plastics, hard-bodies and vibes all produce their share of larger flathead, both casting and trolling. Interestingly, another surprisingly common source of monster flathead encounters occurs when one of these aquatic unicorns grabs a smaller fish that’s been hooked by an angler. This unintentional “bait” might be a whiting, a bream, or even another flathead. While a lot of these chance encounters are brief and brutal, with the attacking dusky coughing out its would-be meal before it can be landed, there’s a vital message in these incidents that we’ll return to shortly.

Weighted plastics on standard jig heads still have a place, especially in slightly deeper water.

ABOVE

For many anglers, pinning a really big flattie is simply a welcome bonus that happens very occasionally while targeting average fish, be they smaller “eating-size” flathead, 6

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

bream, whiting, estuary perch, mulloway or whatever else. If you’re really lucky, you might happen to hook into a couple of larger flathead every year while you’re fishing for these “other” things. Just occasionally—perhaps once every few seasons— one of those bigger flatties might be a genuine unicorn in the 85 to 95 cm-plus range.

Flathead regularly leave their calling card in the form of a distinct mark or “lie”.

In my opinion, and based on years of careful observation, these rather sporadic and haphazard captures don’t truly reflect the relative (and growing) abundance of bigger flathead in many of our estuary systems. I believe that there are a lot more of these special fish out there than are being hooked. For me, the take-home message from this is the fact that really big flathead are a specialist target, just like mulloway. Anglers who deliberately set out to find and catch them, and who tailor their gear and techniques accordingly, will encounter a lot more big flathead than generalist, scattergun, “whatever-comes-along” fishos. So, how do we effectively target these bigger flathead?

They’re masters of camouflage CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

GO BIG OR GO HOME!

A serious hunk of soft plastic rigged and ready to rumble. Sadly, these 200 mmplus monster Squidgies Whip Baits are no longer made, but there are other options. ABOVE

One of the simplest ways to increase your strike rate on larger lizards is to up-size your bait, lure or fly. If you normally use 6 to 10 cm poddy mullet for bait, try a few 15 to 25 cm offerings. Likewise lures or flies. Up-sizing definitely works. Sure, you may catch a few less smaller fish (and your bream by-catch will definitely dwindle), but I guarantee you’ll encounter more large flathead (and jewies) as a result of going bigger. While it works on many fish, the other stand-out Aussie species that responds particularly well to up-sized baits and lures is the mighty Murray cod of our inland waterways. I firmly believe that with both Murray cod and flatties, the single most important step you can take to boost the number of strikes registered from larger specimens is to significantly increase the size of whatever it is you’re throwing at them. There’s just something about larger prey that pushes their buttons! 8

There’s just something about larger prey that pushes their buttons! The fact that the biggest flathead or Murray cod in any system are mostly seen by casual anglers when these whoppers suddenly materialise and try to eat something smaller that’s already been hooked simply reinforces this message: these peak predators prefer and actively seek out larger prey items. So, think big!

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

The shallows are full of life… and predators! These small whiting are prime flathead fodder.

SHALLOW THINKING CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

The other interesting parallel between big flathead and large Murray cod is the fact that they both spend a lot more time hunting in considerably shallower water than you might expect. There are three main reasons for this behaviour: Firstly, larger fish have less to fear from predators (especially birds) than smaller ones, so they’re less cautious about entering the shallows. Secondly, shallow areas heat up quicker on sunny days, and large predators regularly seek out warmer water to increase their metabolic rate, just like the lizards and crocodiles that big flathead get their nicknames from. Finally, there’s often more food in the shallows than there is in deeper water.

Fish hunting in the shallows are switched on, fired up and eminently catch-able.

Think about this shallow water phenomenon for a moment and let it really sink in. It may seem counter-intuitive at first glance, especially if you were raised on popular notions of searching for those legendary “deep holes” when chasing big fish of any type. The truth is that a lot of very large fish spend much more time in shallow water than many people realise. At least as importantly, if they’re in shallow water, they’re likely to be actively hunting for food. Sure, big cod, mulloway or flathead will lie up and rest in those legendary deep holes, but often they’re relatively inactive (and therefore harder to catch) while they’re in those deep water holding spots. By contrast, fish hunting in the shallows are switched on, fired up and eminently catch-able.

Of course, “shallow” is a comparative term. If you’re chasing mulloway or Murray cod, it could mean fishing in 2 to 4 m of water, instead of the more traditional 5 to 10 m (and more). But for flathead, it can mean focusing on the really shallow stuff: literally ankle to waist deep water. It’s amazing how much time dusky flathead (both big and not-so-big) will spend up in this super skinny stuff. After all, there’s lots of tucker in there and, as a bonus, generally much less boat traffic and fishing pressure. For unicorn-sized flathead, I firmly believe that the shallows are where it’s at, especially in spring, summer and early autumn, when the water’s warm and the flats are alive with mullet, herring, whiting, bream, garfish, silver biddies, prawns and heaps of other tucker.

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Gloves are mandatory for handling crocs.

BELOW

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

LOOKING FOR LIES Naturally, fish are easily spooked out of such skinny water, but I’ve also observed that big flathead, in particular, will often return to the same shallow areas within 20 minutes to an hour of being scared into deeper water. There’s simply too much food and warmth there for them to ignore. As a bonus for those of us who hunt them, they also regularly leave a calling card as they exit the shallows in the form of a distinctive divot in the sand or mud called a flathead “lie”. (No, a flathead lie doesn’t mean catching an 87 cm lizard and telling your mate it was a metre long!) These lies or marks are a dead give-away of the presence and preferred ambush stations of flathead, as well as their orientation, typically facing into the tidal flow. Carefully note the location (on your GPS, if necessary) of any larger lies and come back in an hour or so, on the next tide, or even next day, next week or next season and work the spot over thoroughly. There’s nothing new about this little trick. The legendary “Flathead Fred” Bayes was using it to deadly effect on his favourite Gippsland and southern NSW waters two decades and more ago. It still works today.

Flathead “lies” might not always be distinct, but their message is clear. RIGHT

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

SEASONAL PATTERNS If you accept my assertions that big flathead tend to key onto larger prey items, and that these fish also do a lot of their active hunting in relatively shallow water, it quickly becomes obvious that the best way to specifically target these unicorns is to cast big baits, lures or flies into water shallower than about 1.5 m. However, we also need to be doing this at a time and in a place when above-average numbers of large flathead are likely to be present in these shallow areas. Mature, female flathead exhibit varying behaviour patterns throughout the year, and move around extensively within any estuary system. Some will even leave the estuary and travel short distances offshore or up and down the coast, potentially re-entering an entirely different catchment. This clearly benefits the genetic diversity of the species. For the purposes of chasing unicorns, we really need to seek out aggregations or gatherings of these larger, female flathead. Such aggregations are typically related to

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reproductive behaviour, and occur in the lower (downstream) reaches of our estuaries during spring and summer, as water temperatures rise and days lengthen. Exactly when the big girls start to drop downstream and gather in these lower reaches of our estuaries in preparation for breeding varies, depending mostly on the latitude of any particular location. Up around Bundaberg, Hervey Bay and the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, it can happen as early as August, while in Victoria’s Gippsland Lakes, it mightn’t take place until Christmas, or even later. In northern NSW you can expect to see it happening in October and November. On the south coast of that state, it’s more obvious during late November and December. If you’re learning the ropes in a new estuary system, the best way to discover when and exactly where the big mummas are moving onto the lower estuary flats in spring or early summer is to go out and have a look. Wade the flats or cruise slowly in

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

THE ETHICS OF TARGETING BREEDERS The stinger treble typically pulls free of the plastic during the fight. Here it has been snicked back into place for the photo. your boat or kayak and watch for larger “lies” or, even better, the explosive puff of sand as a big crocodile takes off and high tails it for deeper water. Keep a diary or a journal, note the best spots, the tides and the dates where this happened and come back later. Becoming a successful angler (one of the so-called “10 per centers” who catch 90 per cent of the fish) is all about identifying productive patterns and repeating them. It’s not rocket science, but it does require some effort and thought.

Seriously large dusky flathead are extremely important breeders.

Scientific studies have shown that dusky flathead reproduction mostly occurs between October and March, and it’s believed these fish may be “serial spawners”: capable of dropping eggs and milt several times over a number of weeks or even months. The bigger the female, the more eggs she’ll carry. Younger mature females around 50 to 55 cm or so in length will produce roughly a quarter of a million eggs or more each year, while the really big mummas can drop up to four million eggs every season! Sadly, a fair bit of misinformation has been doing the rounds in recent years claiming that larger female flathead are “barren” or infertile, and that most of their eggs are deformed or otherwise incapable of hatching. This claim is simply not supported by peer-reviewed scientific evidence. Certainly, there are higher numbers of non-viable eggs found in the gonads of any really large (and therefore old) flathead, but there are also a heck of a lot of healthy eggs. The bottom line is that seriously large dusky flathead are extremely important breeders. The future of our flathead stocks relies heavily on them. The ethics of targeting fish during their breeding season is a can of worms, to be sure, but in the absence of any evidence that careful catch-and-release (using the good handling practices explained here) causes any reabsorption of eggs or other disruptions to flathead breeding, it’s fair and reasonable for anglers to actively target them at these times. Almost all of the world’s most famous sport fisheries—from Atlantic salmon runs in Scotland or Norway and steelhead trout in Canada, to black marlin fishing off Australia’s Great Barrier Reef—rely on pre-spawning, spawning and post-spawning aggregations of fish, as do many commercial fisheries. So long as science-based limits and controls are observed, such fisheries should remain sustainable far into the future.

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

Soft vibes can be deadly in deeper water. Big, un-weighted plastics fill the same niche up in the skinny stuff.

PUTTING THE PIECES TOGETHER The results have been nothing short of spectacular! 1 4

You can tell a lot about the terrain a big flathead has been hanging out in lately by its colouration. This mid-80s fish came out of a shallow mix of sand, rock and weed.

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CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

Okay, to briefly recap what we’ve covered so far: — There are more big flathead in our estuary systems than most anglers realise. — These larger flatties have slightly different habits to their smaller brethren, and therefore respond best to a specialised approach. — Bigger flathead prefer bigger meals. Up-sizing your baits and lures definitely works. — Big flathead often hunt in surprisingly shallow water, especially during spring, summer and early autumn.

Put these four lessons together and we move a lot closer to unlocking the secret to pinning those unicorns on a far more regular basis. The final, critical pieces in this puzzle finally fell into place for me during 2017, when I read a magazine column by Queensland fishing writer and renowned trauma surgeon, David Green. Greeny’s column detailed a technique pioneered by a handful of switched-on south-east Queensland estuary fishers — notably Chris Metcalfe — who were targeting jumbo flathead with great success in shallow water while using over-sized soft stick baits. I’d actually played around with a vaguely similar technique near the end of the first decade of the new millennium, just before moving to Darwin for a three-year sojourn amongst the barra and saratoga. My approach then was to rig some reasonably large plastics “weedless-style”, on wide-gape worm hooks. It worked, and I caught a few nice flatties doing it, but I certainly didn’t set the world on fire. I also missed a lot of good hits. In retrospect, my lures hadn’t been big enough, I wasn’t fishing in shallow enough water, and the obscured hook point in those weedless rigs adversely impacted my hookup rate… It was yet another case of “close, but no cigar”! Reading David Green’s writings made me sit up, take notice and reassess the big flathead situation. It got the mental cogs grinding, and I was inspired! To cut a long story short, I fiddled about in the tackle room that afternoon rigging giant Squidgies Whip Baits un-weighted on various jig hooks, with treble stinger hooks attached and pinned into the lures’ bellies. The end products looked ridiculously huge, but they also looked like they just might work! Next morning I hit the water and motored to a suitable flat where I’d been seeing (but not catching) some solid duskies over the previous few days. I deployed the bowmounted electric motor and spent the first four or five casts nutting out the specific retrieve Greeny had described in his column… and on my sixth cast of the session, a fat, fit 78 cm lizard burst from the sand and violently nailed the jumbo lure! It’s not every day you receive such instantaneous and positive feedback on a “new” technique.

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

Since that breakthrough moment, courtesy of David Green, I’ve played around a hell of a lot with this rather radical technique, adding a few of my own little twists and wrinkles and fine tuning things along the way. The results have been nothing short of spectacular! My wife Jo and I are now catching a lot more big flathead than we ever did in the past, and are having an absolute ball doing it. Many of the strikes are visual, and the fights in shallow water seriously challenge the dour, “wet sack” reputation of the much-maligned flattie as a sport fish. We’ve had big lizards carving up all over the surface and even tail-walking like barra across shin-deep flats! None of this would’ve happened for me if I hadn’t read David Green’s column that day… So thank you, Greeny. And now I want to share the details of this method (or my take on it) with you:

Click to watch rigged lures in action. BELOW

A release glove helps protect fish and angler alike.

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THE METHOD Dark and dangerous, especially if you’re a mullet or a whiting! Big flathead must be akin to great white sharks for smaller forage fish. Death can spring from below at any moment. ABOVE

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While there are a number of lure options (both soft and hard) that can effectively be used to target large flathead lurking in shallow water, the one that has worked best for me involves the use of fish-shaped (shad-style) soft plastics in the 150 to 250 mm (6 to 10 inch) size range. Having been involved with the creation and refinement of the Squidgies range of softies from 2001 until 2016, it’s hardly surprising that this is the brand I chose, but there are certainly others on the market.

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

I started out with massive 200 mm Squidgies Whip Bait tails (which are actually a bit longer than the 200 mm stated on the pack). These are a very serious chunk of soft plastic. They’re also quite hefty, making it possible to throw them long distances without the addition of any extra weight, even off baitcaster gear. In fact, a reasonably heavy rod is needed to handle the significant casting weight of these giant plastics. Sadly, these over-sized Whip Baits are no longer manufactured, and it didn’t take me (or rather, the fish!) long to literally chew through most of my small reserve. I still have a few 200s, held together with Super Glue or Tarzan’s Grip, but these days I mostly use the smaller 150 mm Squidgies Whip Baits, which are still in production. I’ll even drop down to the 125 mm Whip Baits at times, especially if my main focus is to catch a few “eating size” flatties out of the shallows. However, I’m left with the very clear impression that these smaller plastics aren’t as appealing to larger flathead as the supersized models. I’m still searching for a viable replacement for the 200 mm Whip Bait. The 9 and 12 inch (230 and 300 mm) Lunker City Slug-Go is a very likely contender, despite its somewhat different style and action. Whatever plastic you choose, it’d be possible to simply rig these tails on a suitable-sized jig head and cast them into the shallows, and I’ve certainly done this. However, jig heads with hooks big enough to fit such lures are usually way too heavy for the task. Rigging big plastics without the addition of a weighted jig head also results in a much more effective and life-like action that seems to really trigger the predatory instincts of big flatties in the shallows.

I believe that what we’re trying to imitate is a mullet, whiting, herring, silver biddy, luderick, bream, tarwhine or similar fish, either foraging and feeding across the flats, or (better still) swimming erratically as a result of some sort of injury or illness. Sick, distressed or injured bait fish are prime targets for ambush predators such as large flathead. That’s why these hunters so often grab hooked fish—which are struggling, flashing their flanks and possibly emitting fear pheromones or scents into the water—in preference to healthy, freeswimming targets, which are no doubt much harder to catch. The swim/glide/dip/dart action of a very lightly-weighted or un-weighted big plastic imitates these prey items in an extremely life-like manner. Such a lure also offers the benefit of travelling higher in the water column than a weighted offering for at least a part of each retrieve. In shallow water, a lure that spends some of its time not far under the surface is more visible to a lurking predator from a greater distance than one that stays on the bottom and shuffles across the sand or mud. In my opinion, this improved detection rate significantly increases the effectiveness of the presentation. For years we’ve been implored to keep our lures down on or near the bottom when targeting flathead, and that makes perfect sense in 6 or 10 m of water. But in water shallower than 2 m, a big flattie will happily burst from concealment and attempt to nail a hapless victim swimming higher in the water column, or even right on the surface. The number of flatties that smash poppers and stick baits intended for whiting and bream confirms this claim. In shallow water, you don’t need to keep your lure on the bottom to fool flatties, and there are actually benefits in not doing so.

THE KILLER RIG After experimenting with various alternatives, the rigging method I’ve settled on at this point for presenting big, un-weighted soft plastics on the flats consists of a large, single jig hook emerging from the back of the plastic, with a treble “stinger” hook attached via a short-ish (60 to 100 mm) stinger link, and then pinned into the belly of the lure by one tine or point. Note that it is absolutely critical that this link to the stinger remains slightly slack once rigged, so as not to bend or kink the tail and thus impact on its action or cause the lure to spin. It’s also important to pin the treble as straight and close to the centreline of the plastic as possible, with the other two tines or hook bends evenly placed to help balance the plastic. You want everything to sit as straight and true as possible in the water. The single hooks I’ve settled on are Owner Saltwater Jig Hooks, Model No. 5319, in sizes 5/0, 7/0 and 10/0, depending on the dimensions of the plastic (be sure to use at least 7/0s in bigger plastics to give plenty of hook exposure). These are strong, razor sharp, reasonably fine gauge hooks that are primarily designed to have lead heads cast or moulded onto them, but I use them as they come, without added

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CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

STINGER LINKS I’ve used several different materials and methods to attach the stinger to the single jig hook. Crimping short lengths of 60 or 80 pound mono works well, as does tying a link made of 80 or 100 pound braid. However, my favourite material for this purpose is a French-made, knottable wire-and-braid material called “Graphite Metal Tresse”. I’d had a small spool of this stuff kicking around for years (it was originally distributed in Australia by the Shipton Trading Company) and eventually ran out, but I was able to order some more on-line. It’s possible that the TyGer brand of knottable multi-strand wire might also do a similar job, but I haven’t tried it yet in this role.

Baitcaster or spin, the choice is yours. RIGHT Not a monster by any means, but any dusky over 75 cm is special fish. ABOVE

weight. They may be a little hard to track down, especially in larger sizes, and I’m not sure the 10/0 is still made. But you’ll certainly find the 5/0 and 7/0 sizes on-line and there are, of course, other alternatives available from various hook makers.

It is absolutely critical that this link to the stinger remains slightly slack once rigged.

For my stingers I’ve been using Mustad Saltism Trebles, Model No. 36330NP-DS, mostly in sizes No. 1, 1/0 and 2/0, again depending upon the size of the soft plastic. However, any good quality, corrosion-resistant and sharp treble of an appropriate size will do the job. CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

Whatever material you choose for your stinger link, it should be reasonably flexible and highly resistant to chafing from the sharp teeth of big flathead, otherwise you’ll need to replace it after a fish or two. Using a knottable wire largely overcomes this issue and also provides a good level of bite-off insurance against the occasional decent tailor that gate crashes the party! At first, I went to all sorts of trouble to conceal the link to the stinger inside the body of the plastic by using a needle to pull it through before attaching the treble. However, I’ve found that this is not only unnecessary, but actually counterproductive, as the link almost always tears out through the body when a fish is hooked, badly ripping the plastic in the process. Flathead don’t seem to be put off at all by leaving the link exposed, but if this aspect concerns you, use a clear nylon or fluorocarbon link (either crimped or knotted).

As for anchoring the stinger link to the single jig hook, it can be attached to the eye of this hook, to a clip or ring passed through the eye, or directly to the shank of the jig hook. I prefer the last method (attaching to the shank), but if you go this way, you’ll need some method for preventing the attachment point being dragged back along the jig hook by a powerful fish, again cutting up the plastic. You also obviously need to make sure the connection can’t pass completely over the barb and point of the jig hook and detach from it while fighting a fish!

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I’ve addressed these stinger link anchoring issues by binding a lump in place with fly tying or rod building thread (a length of light braid will do the job, too). While I’m at it, I bind a couple of simple wire keeper barbs in place (as shown in the accompanying image). These are made from single strand wire and really help to anchor and hold the soft plastic in place. This might seem like a lot of fiddling about, but it actually only takes 20 minutes or so to create enough pre-wrapped and keeper-barbed hooks for a full season of chasing big flatties. Personally, I reckon it’s time well spent.

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

Swimming a tagged dusky in the high 70 cm range prior to release.

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A STING IN THE TAIL An under-belly stinger serves a very important and practical function in the rigging of these big plastics.

When I first posted images on social media showing how I’ve been rigging these large, un-weighted plastics, I copped a little criticism from some quarters about the addition of the treble stinger. A few people rightly pointed out that these stingers could potentially lead to deep hooking, thereby increasing the chance of fish injuries or even fatalities. Some observers also offered the opinion that the stingers were totally unnecessary, stating that big flathead always engulf their prey, making a hookup inevitable, even on a single point. As I explained in my responses to these comments at the time, there’s always a risk of injuring fish, with any hooking arrangement. That’s something we need to factor in to our sport. If you don’t want to run the risk of ever injuring a fish, you probably need to reconsider whether you should be fishing at all.

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

Flathead are born mean and it’s amazing how often a little spikey will charge up and rattle a really big plastic.

I went on to point out that I didn’t see a lot of difference between a soft plastic rigged this way and a hard-bodied lure or a vibe (lipless crankbait) sporting one, two or even three sets of swinging trebles. I also begged to differ on the argument about big flathead always engulfing their prey completely, thus ensuring a solid hookup. We’ve certainly missed strikes from big duskies (on various hook set-ups), and also pulled hooks during the fight. It happens. But adding a stinger seems to increase the likelihood of connecting in the first place and (hopefully) staying connected. Interestingly, around half of the flatties over 70 cm in length we’ve landed so far on these customised lures have been pinned by just the treble, which seems to tell a story. Yes, we’ve also landed a couple of large flathead with that stinger treble lodged well back in their mouth, but luckily these all came out quite easily with the help of long-nosed

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pliers and the fish seemed little worse off for the experience, swimming away strongly when released. Fish welfare issues aside, the addition of an under-belly stinger serves a very important and practical function in the rigging of these big plastics, beyond simply increasing hookup and landing rates. The weight and drag of this stinger hook acts as a keel and a counterbalance, helping to maintain the lure in an upright position throughout the retrieve.

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

I’ve experimented extensively with single hook rigs in un-weighted plastics, and most want to roll over on their sides, or even spin in the water. The best way to beat this with a single hook rig was to use a wide-gape worm hook and effectively rig the plastic “weedless”. As explained earlier, this works, and has obvious applications in snaggy or weedy terrain, but hook-up rates definitely decline when using it. As we’re primarily working open water over relatively clean sand or mud bottom strata (and because “unicorn” encounters can be so few and far between!), I prefer to go with the under-belly treble stinger, as shown. It’s not a decision I arrived at haphazardly, and if it ever proves to result in unacceptably high mortality rates, I’ll reassess it. But for now, if it ain’t broke…

A collection of the hardware Starlo uses for building his big, un-weighted soft plastic rigs to cast at over-sized flathead in the shallows. BELOW

THE GEAR I’ve used both baitcaster and spin tackle to target jumbo flathead in shallow water on big, un-weighted soft plastics. Both these tackle styles work well. Personally, I love the added control an overhead reel provides when fighting big, powerful fish, but there’s no doubt that a spinning outfit offers greater flexibility and ease of use, especially if you need to punch bulky, relatively lightweight plastics into any sort of breeze. You don’t need heavy gear, huge line capacities or super sophisticated drag systems to handle even the largest of flathead. Standard 2000 to 4000 size threadline (spinning) reels are perfect when matched up to 2 to 2.2 metre spin sticks. Make sure your rod has enough poke and backbone, not only to cast big, bulky lures, but also to set hooks in hard fish jaws, sometimes at long range. For this task I’d rather a rod that was a tad too stiff than one that’s soft and sloppy in the tip.

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

Binding and gluing a couple of simple, single-strand wire keepers in place on the jig hook serves two purposes: it helps anchor the soft plastic, and also stops the connection to the stinger link sliding back along the shank when a fish is hooked.

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Flathead are tough on leaders and any laziness in this department will come back to bite you, trust me. I normally run 10 or 15 pound (6 kg) braid as my main line. You could certainly go lighter, but as this outfit is also my weapon of choice for targeting mulloway, I’d rather a margin of safety. Keeping fight times short also reduces stress to the fish, making for better post-release survival rates. Braid of this rated strength is skinny and casts well, but has the authority to dictate terms to any fish likely to be encountered in these scenarios. Leader construction is important. Because we’re dealing with shallow and often very clear water, I believe there’s a significant advantage in maintaining a reasonable degree of separation between the more visible braid and the lure. I’d never use less than a full rod length of leader for this caper, and I actually prefer two or even three times that length. That means casting the connecting knot off the spool on every throw, so that knot needs to be as slim, compact and unobtrusive as possible. My preference here is for the FG Knot, but a well-tied and closely trimmed Slim Beauty, Double Uni or Albright will do the job. Tie the knots you know best and trust completely. Because the leader knot is being cast off the spool, I don’t like to go too heavy with my choice of leader material. I find that 6 to 8 kg

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A couple of big (150 mm and 200 mm) Squidgies Whip Baits ready to roll. Note the slack in the stinger link. Making it too tight will upset the action. ABOVE

clear fluorocarbon or nylon is fine for the task and enhances the finesse and subtlety of the whole presentation. If you’re worried about a big flathead chewing through that relatively fine leader (and it can certainly happen), add a short bite tippet of 10 to 15 kg material (clear nylon or fluorocarbon) at the business end and tie your lure to this. This only needs to be 20 to 30 cm long and could be connected to the main leader with a small black swivel or, preferably, a compact, trustworthy knot like an Albright. Whether you use a bite tippet or not, carefully check the working end of your leader after every strike, even if you miss the fish. Trim and re-tie it if there’s the slightest nick or scuff. Flathead are tough on leaders and any laziness in this department will come back to bite you, trust me. The other essential tools you’ll need are a pair of fish-handling gloves, a set of long-nosed pliers and (if you’re in a boat or kayak) a big, knotless landing net.

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

Hooked up on the flats. Will it be an average fish… or a unicorn?

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Click to watch Starlo’s retrieve. LEFT

THE RETRIEVE

Very pale and “starry” flathead like this are typically pulled from clear, shallow sand flats in the lower reaches of our estuaries.

Unlike most of the highly effective presentation strategies used these days with soft plastics, which tend to rely heavilly on rod manipulation, I’ve found that it’s best to impart action to these large, lightly-weighted soft plastics using just the reel. This tallies very closely with the observations of others anglers, including David Green. My favourite way to fish these lures is to cast them as far as possible across the flats (the assistance of a tail wind helps greatly in covering more water), then allow a second or two for CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

them to get down. I then point the rod straight down the line, keeping the tip fairly close to the water, and commence a stop/ start retrieve that involves anything from two to five medium paced to reasonably quick cranks of the reel’s handle, followed by a short but distinct stop or pause. This retrieve is shown here. It really pays to experiment with all of the variables involved in this basic retrieve pattern, especially the number and speed of handle turns and the duration of that all-important pause. Variations in the gear ratios and spool diameters of different reels will affect the speed of the lure and the distance it covers with each crank of the handle. The presentation you’re looking for is a reasonably quick dart or swim of a metre or two, followed by a stop and glide. That pause should be just long enough to allow the big plastic to dip or glide towards the bottom and perhaps make very brief contact with the sand or mud, although this isn’t absolutely essential. With this in mind, the length of the pause should be varied with the depth of the water, from half a second or so in the knee-deep shallows to perhaps a full two or even three seconds in a couple of metres of water. There are no hard and fast rules about any of this and I’ve found that flathead respond differently from one day (or hour) to the next. Mix it up!

Well short of unicorn class, but a nice fish from a kayak, all the same.

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CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

THE STRIKE

A beautifully-marked 80-something dusky. Big flatties are more common than many people realize and their numbers appear to be on the increase, thanks to better management and more enlightened angler attitudes. But that doesn’t mean they’re easy to catch!

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In my experience, most hits tend to come on the pause, or just as the retrieve is recommenced after a pause. They vary from subtle ticks and plucks to full-blooded rips and thumps. Other times, there’s simply an unexpected weight on the line as you begin to crank the handle after a pause. Whatever you feel, if it’s at all suspicious or out of the ordinary, strike! This is best achieved by sweeping the rod tip upwards while cranking the reel rapidly. Don’t be afraid to whack ’em quite hard and really set those hooks! If you miss the fish, drop the tip, pause for a second, then recommence the retrieve. Many times a fired-up flattie will have a second, third or fourth crack at what it perceives as an escaping meal. If it doesn’t, check the lure at the end of the retrieve (snick the stinger back into place if it has been dislodged) and fire it back out there. There’s a good chance the fish will have another crack. There’s often a visual aspect to all of this, especially in shallow, clear water. You may well see the fish as it chases down and takes the lure, or the explosive puff of sand as it springs from hiding to launch its ambush. If this happens, be careful not to strike too soon. Wait until you actually feel something through the line, then react accordingly. Flathead camouflage is so good that sometimes it will seem like the lure has suddenly vanished from sight, or darted sideways for no apparent reason. This could well be an indicator that it has just been eaten! But again, wait until you feel something through the line before setting the hook. With flathead, it’s generally better to react a fraction too late than a fraction too early.

Don’t be afraid to whack ’em quite hard and really set those hooks!

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

THE FIGHT

I like to fish a hard drag setting when throwing over-sized plastics for big flathead in the shallows. I believe this helps greatly with solid hook-sets. Once pinned, most big lizards will give a couple of angry headshakes and then take off like a scalded cat for deeper water. If you’re casting up into the shallows from a boat or kayak, this often means that they’ll run towards you, potentially creating slack line. It’s really important to stay on top of that slack… Crank fast! And just because there’s minimal pressure on the line, don’t assume you’ve hooked a tiddler. As the fish comes past you and heads out into deeper water, the rod will load up and the drag should begin to yield line. It’s advisable to back the pressure off just a click or two at this stage. Maintain smooth, steady pressure as you play the fish. If it takes a lot of line (and trust me, big flatties can, especially on light tackle) try to follow it with the boat. Having too much line in the water increases the risks of falling foul of rock outcrops, weed patches, floating debris, pylons, anchor chains or other boats. Take the fight to the fish. Don’t let it dictate terms to you. As already mentioned, big flathead are very tough on leaders and the harder you pull on them, the more likely serious leader damage becomes. On the other hand, going too soft lengthens fight times and increasing the chances of something going wrong, not to mention tiring the fish excessively and causing lactic acid to build up in its muscles, reducing its survival chances after release. Fish your gear within its limits, but keep the pressure on and smooth.

Tag in place and ready for release. Big lizards are cool looking critters! 2 8

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

It’s at this exact point when most big flathead win their freedom. The critical moment in any encounter with a really large flathead comes as its head breaks the surface near the end of the fight and it begins what I call the “death thrash”. This can easily dislodge or even straighten hooks, or cause serious leader damage resulting in a chew-off. It’s at this exact point when most big flathead win their freedom. If you can possibly net the fish just before its head breaks the surface, always try to do so. This is a luxury not available to the wading or walking angler, who’ll need to lead and swim the fish into progressively shallower water in order to eventually beach it. Chances are it will explode into life and take off again the moment its back breaks the surface. Be alert for this and lighten your drag setting slightly. Also try to stay in front of the fish as much as you can, so that the leader doesn’t form a sharp angle back over those deadly jaws and teeth. It can be hard to stay cool and keep your head when the biggest flathead you’ve ever seen in your life is just a metre or two from being beached or netted, but this is the most critical time in the whole encounter. Taking a moment or two longer at this point can help to avert tragedy and another sorry tale of “the one that got away”. CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

HANDLING UNICORNS

The food intake chute of a decent dusky. Rows of sharp, inward-facing teeth make for one-way traffic flow! ABOVE

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Seriously large flathead are special, valuable creatures. They’re also just a little bit scary! Their weight and sheer strength comes as a surprise to many anglers as they thrash wildly in a knotless net or on the deck of a boat. They can easily cause quite nasty injuries with their teeth or gill cover spikes, and especially with any swinging hooks. They can also hurt themselves badly at this stage, dislodging scales, splitting fins, damaging eyes and so on. Having a game plan in place minimises all of these risks: to you and the fish. If the flattie is safely contained in a large landing net, keep it in the water while you get yourself organised to unhook, measure, photograph and release the catch.

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

Do everything you possibly can to minimize the amount of time that beautiful fish spends out of the water. Avoid dropping big flathead onto dry, hot, abrasive decks or places where they can slam their body into sharp corners and edges. Instead, slide the fish onto a wet towel or dampened boat carpet, and if it’s acting up badly, drop a smaller wet towel or cloth over its eyes. This often has a calming affect. Pull on a pair of soft fish-handling gloves and have long-nosed pliers within easy reach so you can quickly and safely remove those hooks. Meanwhile, your mate should be readying the camera or phone, as well as unrolling the measuring mat and dipping it over the side to wet it. (If you’re on your own you’ll need to have your camera or phone set up to take a quick “selfie” with the fish.) Wearing gloves, it should be possible to get a solid lower jaw grip on the fish without hurting either it or yourself. Slide the unhooked fish onto the wet measuring mat, get a length, and then lift it for a quick photo (always with its weight fully supported by both hands—one holding the bottom jaw and the other under the belly).

I’m not a huge fan of jaw-gripping tools such as Bogas and their various clones. Used well, they’re fine, but too many people treat them as “handles”, swinging the fish around or hanging it up vertically, potentially doing all manner of damage in the process. Try to get by without using a lip gripper if you possibly can. (They also look terrible in photos, in my opinion!) If you must use one, never hang the fish vertically from it without support. Do everything you possibly can to minimize the amount of time that beautiful fish spends out of the water. Think about how long you could hold your breath for and try not to keep the flathead out of its environment any longer than that. A minute or two should be plenty. If things go wrong and the time spins out beyond two minutes, slide the fish back into the net and hold it in the water again for a few minutes, but try to stay as close as possible to the spot where you hooked the big flattie, so that it can be released into the same area. You’ll find all of this clearly explained in a great video here. Once the fish has been unhooked, measured and photographed, hold it in the water by the bottom jaw, facing into any current. Don’t push it back and forth. Just face it into the flow and allow it to recover its strength. This is another good opportunity to snap a few more photos. Chances are the big flattie will soon bite down on your gloved hand and kick strongly. At that point, simply release your grip and allow the fish to swim away… I guarantee that what you’ll be feeling at that moment is one of the greatest highs in fishing!

A release glove helps protect fish and angler alike.

CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

PLAYING TAG

Careful handling, minimum time out of the water and prompt release close to the place of capture all make obvious sense. Swim the fish until it’s ready to go. Survival rates are proven to be extremely high, especially when they’re caught on lures.

Tagging programs are currently underway in several “trophy” flathead fisheries along the NSW coast. Keep an eye out for these distinctive pink tags. If you recapture a tagged fish, record its length, place of capture and the serial number on the tag before re-releasing the fish. You can call (02) 4424 7423 to report the recapture.

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CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

These days, big flathead are being tagged for research purposes in several waterways, so whenever you catch one, closely examine the area around the base of the second dorsal (top) fin for a trailing plastic tag that looks like a piece of pink, yellow or green spaghetti. It may be discoloured are covered in weed and slime if it has been in place for a while, so be sure to look closely. If you do catch a tagged flathead, measure it carefully and try to get a photo of it on the measuring mat, plus a close-up photo of the tag in place. Carefully record the serial number on the tag, too. It’s best to leave the tag in place and re-release the fish, but if it’s too hard to read the number, or you have no way of recording it, cut the tag off flush with the flathead’s back before releasing the fish, and keep the tag in a safe spot where you won’t lose it.

You can report the recapture of a tagged fish by using an online recapture form you’ll find here, by e-mailing gamefish. tagging@dpi.nsw.gov.au, or by calling (02) 4424 7423. Above all, ensure that you carefully record the tag number, date of capture, the exact location where it was caught (using GPS co-ordinates, if possible) and the length of fish. The data generated by this program plays a vital role in managing and preserving our flathead stocks.

Another big girl, tagged and ready for release. This one was just a couple of centimetres shy of the 90 mark. BELOW LEFT

THE FUTURE

I’ve mentioned several times already in this feature that I believe numbers of big flathead may well be on the rebound in many areas. There are a few reasons for this, but the most important one is that more and more big flathead are being returned to the water alive these days by recreational anglers. This is happening both in jurisdictions where it’s mandated by law, and also in places where you’re still allowed to keep a big female flathead. This new paradigm contrasts starkly with the situation a few decades ago, when trophy flathead were almost always killed and eaten. As a teenager, I clearly remember seeing dried flattie heads and tails nailed to trees in camp grounds, or proudly displayed on the shed walls of older fishermen. Happily, those days are fading into history. It’s no longer cool to kill big flathead, and you’re unlikely to impress many people or win friends by doing so. CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

There are few better feelings than watching a prime breeder swim strongly away.

It’s no longer cool to kill big flathead, and you’re unlikely to impress many people or win friends by doing so. I love eating fresh flathead fillets. They’re one of my favourites. But these days I have a strictly enforced personal bag limit of five flathead a day between 40 and 60 cm in length. Keeping that many (if I’m lucky enough to catch them) provides several great meals for the family, while letting the big girls go helps to preserve the future of these wonderful fish. Really big flathead—the genuine unicorns— are unique and special creatures. They evoke awe and admiration in those people who are fortunate enough to encounter them. Using the information I’ve laid out in this feature, I’m convinced that you’ll be able to find and catch a lot more big flathead than you ever believed possible. This places a heavy burden of responsibility on you to do the right thing, and to also encourage others to do the same. The message is a simple one: Let them go, let them grow!

Less dried tails and heads nailed to trees and fence posts as sad trophies these days means the future should hold plenty of positive flathead “tales”! RIGHT

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CHASING UNICORNS — targeting BIG flathead in shallow water

Chasing Unicorns — Tight Lines Magazine

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