With permission from Rasmus Ovesen, editor of Fin Chasers Magazine, we’re republishing their “The Indo-Pacific: Would the Real Permit Please Stand Up?
It is worth reading every word because most of us have never cast a fly in the Indo Pacific Ocean, and never to Trachinotus falcatus’ nearest relative Trachinotus blochii, the Indo Pacific permit. If you have experienced the Indo Pacific and blochii, you belong to a small club of anglers.
As it turns out, the Pacific model maybe even trickier to bed than the Atlantic version.
Indo-Pacific: Would the real Permit please stand up?
By Jako Lucas / Fin Chasers
[dropcap]I[/dropcap]f you ever mention the word ‘permit’ to any avid fly fisherman who has been fortunate (or unfortunate) enough to fish for these fish, you can expect a variation of reactions. Some, if not many of them however, will result with a tear in the eye. In my personal opinion I see permit fishing as a love/hate relationship, or more precisely: I love to hate permit.
To take this to an even higher level is to compare the Atlantic permit with Indo Pacific permit. This is a subject that has the potential to start endless debates and is seriously taboo. To clear this up, we spend most of our time on the outer atols in the Indian Ocean, thus we guide and fish for the Indo Pacific permit predominantly. In saying this, my time spent fishing for Atlantic permit is a fraction of time compared to time spent for Indos.
Having spent over nine years guiding on these pristine flats for many different species I can honestly say that the Indo Pacific permit is the one fish that haunts my dreams. The reason for sharing this deep passion for Indos vs Atlantics with you is a comment a client made not too long ago when I was guiding. I told him that the area that we will be fishing has the potential of producing permit. He turned to his friend and said, “don’t worry these Permit are much easier to catch than Atlantic Permit.” I managed not to give him a death threat and we moved along. Needless to say I must have shown them over 20 Permit, of which, they caught nothing. So lets see why I am of the opinion that our Indo Pacific Permit are harder to target.
Helmut Zaderer releases a hefty Indo Pacific Trachinotus blochii. Photo Fin Chasers.
Atlantic Permit vs Indo Pacific Permit – What is an Indo Pacific Permit?
Indo Pacific permit are also known as Silver Pompano or just Pompano (Trachinotus blochii) and is a member of the Carangidae family and a relative of the Atlantic permit (Trachinotus falcatus). For those of us based in the Indian Ocean we see them as the baby brother of the Atlantic Permit, but what they lack in size they sure do make up in attitude! For this reason we simply refer to all fish belonging to this family and found in the waters of the Indo-Pacific as permit.
The one point to argue is the size difference; I have landed an Indo permit close to 30-pounds with clients, which is considered a once in a life time experience. Generally, you’ll find them more likely between 6- to 15-pounds. Compared to the Atlantic permit you will find fish of over 40-pounds and between 20- and 30-pounds more regularly.
In my opinion, Permit are the ultimate quarry to catch on a fly. They are fast, powerful, beautiful, spooky and suspicious of any unnatural food presented to them. Fishing for them demands dedication and commitment as there will certainly be days, weeks and sometimes even months with little chance of reward.
To find Permit, you have to think like a Permit. To catch Permit, you have to know where to find them, what they are eating and then hope and pray they woke up on the right side of the bed!
Habitat and Tides
Juvenile permit inhabit sandy shorelines and shallow, sandy or muddy bays near river mouths while adults move out in schools to clear seaward reefs. Juveniles are found in small schools, while larger adults are usually solitary or in pairs. We also see the juveniles crushing with sting rays in St Brandon’s. Permit feed primarily on sand mollusks and other hard-shelled invertebrates; however they tend to spend the majority of their time in deeper water in lagoons and drop-offs, close to coral ridges and bommies. I have even found specific coral bommies that had shoals of resident fish and every time I took clients to have a look, they would swim towards the boat for a closer inspection. Permit love to feed on crabs and other forms of crustacean and if the tide and area allows for safe passage, they will jump at the opportunity to feed in the shallows where these prey items are abundant. So much so, you will be surprised at how shallow the water needs to be for them to sneak onto the flat.
I have found flats with a mottled bottom and a fair amount of turtle grass to be the best areas to focus on. This type of bottom provides cover and food for a vast array of marine life including the ‘crabby’ treats that permit love to wolf down. Areas, which have this type of bottom, and which are found close to the lagoon edge or surf usually yield your best chance of success. But best keep in mind, however, these fish have the ability to appear and disappear at any time and any place. We call this the David Copperfield effect!
Why are Indo Pacific Permit so hard to catch?
There are many different factors that you need to consider before even thinking of catching an Indo Pacific permit. Here are some of the essential criteria, which have brought me success:
Read more . . . Fly selection; Spotting; Positioning; Casting; Line Management; Fly Positioning; Fly Movement; Setting the hook; The Fight, and Summary.
Very interesting