It’s no surprise that more and more keen anglers are venturing up to the tropical north to tick the jungle perch off the bucket list!

These fish are a truly magical species to target, not only do they test your finesse angling and stalking skills, but the habitat you will venture into to find them is truly breathtaking. To get yourself hooked onto a few of these gems, I highly recommend throwing surface. Watching them explode out of the crystal clear steams is some of the most exciting light gear fishing available.

Another great option to have in the tackle bag is grub-style soft plastics. Casting them into the strike zone will most likely get them smashed and if it doesn’t, it will get crunched on the way down. The Zman GrubZ are the stand out for me. Not only are they tough, they’re also very buoyant, making them basically come to life in the water, even when resting on the bottom the grub tail will be swimming for you. Fish them with a light enough jighead as you can get away, you can use them on the surface, too. Sometimes a fast almost pelagic style retrieve is the best way to excite a big jungle perch! Mix it up.

With cooler weather about the jacks in the sweetwater are a little harder to pin, but if you keep persisting you will by rewarded. Prospect the areas that hold good cover and the right looking environment. When you find these spots, get yourself in the right positions to pepper that snag from every angle possible before moving onto the next likely looking snag. I was rewarded with a cracker jack the other day by working a good-looking snag for about 20 minutes. They are there, you just have to be confident with your plan of attack. It is such a good feeling when you tempt one to strike. They hit hard and fast, so be ready when it happens! 

When out targeting some of the freshwater tropical natives, you have a good chance of meeting a few of the other locals in the by-catch. The snakehead gudgeon is a colourful character that doesn’t mind smacking a soft plastic! The markings on these fish are quite amazing. They have a dark brown body with vibrant red and yellow patterns. For the size of these fish they put up a good fight with tinny ferocious head shakes.

Another little hard hitter is the spangled perch. They are a beautiful little fish that will also put in the hard yards for the size of them. They have a yellowish colour to them with little spots all over. They often share the same snags as the JPs. 

We have all heard that saying ‘match-the-hatch’ and that doesn’t mean what’s just in the water. When out exploring the many freshwater streams, take notice of what is happening above the water. From the insects, to the vegetation that is falling into the water. Often trying to imitate vegetation, small berries, insects, frogs and even lizards is a great way to go about tempting spooky fish. A lot of the small holes and pools are full of fish competing against each other to the food, so a lot of the action is based on reaction bites and thinking outside the box can bring amazing results. A great example of this was when I was fishing my favourite river and I noticed a few birds perched on an overhanging tree. I tied on a small white grub and flicked it directly under them to imitate their droppings. Boom fish on! 

Remember to stay safe out there and enjoy! Catch you next time!