Basically you use it to spike the fish in the brain, killing it instantly. I have seen through our own hit and miss attempts really mess this up and miss the brain, only having to repeat the task over and over again until you see the fish suddenly stop moving. I am a huge fan of Killing a fish as quite as possible, in fact if I intend on keeping the fish I will kill it before any high fives or photos – this is just a mark of respect I have for fish. Due to vague write ups and “general” descriptions on how to kill a Snapper affectively, I have decided to do my own research and dissect a Snapper Head. To show exactly where the brain is located and what the size is. It wasn’t till I opened up the head that I relised just how off I was and also it gave me a very good precise area for the brain – dispelling a lot of what others had said.

Let’s get into it.

Below are photos I took of a Snapper I chopped open to show where its brain really is. I don’t apologies for the graphic nature of these photos as I know gutting and killing a fish is not a clean process and if you are only use to finished clean fillets – killing and eating your own fish is not for you. Please also note this fish is well dead before I attempted to chop it up and was killed very quickly, it did not suffer. This is a Smaller Pan size Snapper and the reason I chose this is that it is often the size people catch and keep (best eating in my opinion and they aren’t breeding stock).

Snapper Before Dissection

Cross Section Snapper Head Brain

Iki going straight through brain

Snapper – exact iki spot to hit brain

So from these pictures you should get a good idea of where the brain is located and how to hit the brain when you are faced with a Snapper. There is no need to put any angle on the iki spike as this may lead to you missing the brain and not killing the Snapper. If you don’t hit the brain there is a good chance the Snapper will take 20 – 30 mins to suffocate to death. This has issues other than the basic disrespect you have for what you eat. Leaving a fish to die this way causes the meat to degrade in a huge way. A build up of lactic acid and other chemicals the fish’s body releases in an effort to combat the effects of suffocation result in bad tasting fish, come meal time. This is the same for any fish. The best practice is to kill the fish as soon as you have decided you will keep it.

The best way to know if you have hit the brain is that the fish will stop moving straight away and may start to have tiny spasms. You will also see that its gills aren’t moving anymore, if there is still gill movement or it is still flapping then the Snapper is still alive and you need to spike it again till it stops. Sometimes after killing a Snapper they may still flap the odd time, this is just nerve activity.

If you catch a Kahawai you will want to bleed it fairly quickly otherwise the meat will spoil or you might end up with that fishy taste. The best way to bleed a Kahawai is to cut up through the gill latch just past the gills (with a sharp knife) then up through until you reach where the spin and head met. This will cut through first the Ventral Artery, and then through the Dorsal Artery and Vein (found just under the vertebrate).

Next pull the top of the head back towards the spin and blood should start to squirt out. You can also cut up from the bottom of the tail through to the vertebrate (this cuts through the lower Dorsal Vein and Artery). If you are on a boat do this over the side since it can get messy. It’s a good opportunity as well to gut the fish and clean out any excess blood using the sea water. To keep the meat in its best form you should then put the Kahawai on ice.

Bleeding Kahawai is a good idea and the sooner you do it the better the result in terms of meat quality. A common mistake is that people don’t bleed Kahawai soon enough and the result is horrible tasting meat which might put them off eating Kahawai ever again. This is a common mistake with many newer fisherman and as a result Kahawai often get labelled as a second class fish for eating. If you bleed Kahawai and preserve them well then this is a great source of fish for dinner and since it’s a very easy fish to catch your dinner plate shouldn’t get empty.

For more information on the Fish Blood Circulatory System VISIT THIS LINK

Andy and Dave had bought along a Kontiki, which in its self was a mission to launch in such narly conditions,this was deployed since the conditions were tough on any form of rod fishing.  A long cast was needed as the steep drop off caused good swells to dump right on any short casts.

Tally of the mish
Scuzzy~Lost four ledger rigs
Jordan~0
Andy~Wet chest from wave hitting Quad incident
Dave~Lost one Surfcaster
FreeSpoool~ Found one Dive knife sheath, found one Surfcaster belonging to Dave three hours later,and caught one ledger rig lost by Scuzzy.

Great mish, even though the conditions didnt play ball, great to be out and about. Nice to meet others from here, look forward to the next mish. More than likely stuffed up the pics but not to worry, had a great time and was good to catch up with a few of the guys, we will do it again.

Fish Blood Circulatory System.

Like in humans the reason for the blood circulatory system is to move blood around the body to keep the different organs and functions working. The system which moves the blood around is made up of arteries and veins. Simply put Arteries move oxygenated blood while veins move deoxygenated blood. In human’s blood is moved around the body using the heart, deoxygenated blood travels through veins to the lungs where it gets oxygenated and leaves through the arteries. It is similar with fish however the deoxygenated blood travels through veins to the gills where it gets oxygenated and leaves through the arteries. The main Arteries in a fish are the Dorsal Artery and the Ventral Artery. The Dorsal Artery runs underneath the vertebrate from the tail of the fish through into its head. The Ventral Artery connects the heart to the gills which is found underneath the gills back through the gill latch. The Dorsal Vein runs a similar line to the Dorsal Artery.

Diagram showing the Dorsal Artery and Vein and also the Ventral Artery

How to Bleed a Fish

First kill the fish, whether this is with a donger or iki spike. The heart will beat for several minutes after the fish has died, so there is no worry about the blood not coming out. If you catch a fish like a Kahawai you will want to bleed it fairly quickly otherwise the meat will spoil or you might end up with that fishy taste. The best way to bleed a Kahawai or other fish is to cut up through the gill latch just past the gills (with a sharp knife) then up through until you reach where the spin and head met. This will cut through first the Ventral Artery, and then through the Dorsal Artery and Vein (found just under the vertebrate). Next pull the top of the head back towards the spin and blood should start to squirt out. You can also cut up from the bottom of the tail through to the vertebrate (this cuts through the lower Dorsal Vein and Artery). If you are on a boat do this over the side since it can get messy. It’s a good opportunity as well to gut the fish and clean out any excess blood using the sea water. To keep the meat in its best form you should then put the Kahawai on ice. Bleeding all fish is a good idea and the sooner you do it the better the result in terms of meat quality.

Diagram showing the cuts made to bleed a fish

Baited Crab on hooks - Click for larger image - Thanks Carl for the image

Technique

- Pull off the limbs and shell and cut it in half down the length of it.

- Put 6/0-8/0 hook though leg socket in middle and angle it towards the back of the crab slightly and push it out through the underside of the crab.

- Wrap in bait elastic (what is bait elastic? Like cotton however it’s elastic so its very stretchy, it’s found at most fishing stores (even the Warehouse) and is used to wrap bait onto the hook so that it stays there. Essential if using fresh softbait like mussels or crab. )

notes: use frozen crabs as it is much cleaner and easier to do. Also with frozen crabs, when you make the cut, the white crab meat will separate from the guts and crap in the front of the crab leaving you with just meat (better with larger crabs).

Alternative Additions (Thanks Carl):
A couple of ways I like to rig up paddle crab baits, prepare as dj says above by removing the shell and legs.
- For half a crab bait I like to used a single 4/0 or 5/0 Gammy circle hook.
- Ensure your hook isn’t too buried in the bait otherwise you can drop fish.
- For small crabs I like to use two 2/0 Gammy circle hooks.

yes you can buy a stainless steel fast fish smoking draw from warehouse, mitre 10 or a fishing shop, but these are usually in the range of $40 – $200. You can make one just as good out of normal kitchen items or pick up the missing piece for a few $ and they are just as good as the bought ones, all you need is a bbq or portable outdoor cooker.

What you need:
1x oven tray/roasting tray, deep dish.
1x cake cooling rack.
1x roll of tin foil.
1x bag of wood chips.

Method:
1. sprinkel wood chips in bottom of oven tray.
2. place cake cooling rack over the wood chips.
3. put in your fish fillets and cover the tray with tin foil.
4. place on the bbq or out door cooker on low temp and smoke your fillets. you can also do this inside on the stove if you dont mind your kitchen smelling like smoke for a day or 2.

We started to get the gear ready for the moki bash. A few of the guys had never fished for moki before so I spent a little time getting the Kina/Mussel berley going, along with showing them the best rigs and how to bait up with mussels and prawns. It all happened pretty quick as young Jordan popped his Moki cherry on the first cast, it was a little under size but hey, he got the first Moki. A little time went by and all was pretty quiet until dark when the lice turned up.

Jordan with his Moki

At around 10.30pm Kiwicaster made the call to go so he and Jordan left for the night. We were running a sweep steak of $5.00 per person including a few other bits and pieces like Sakuma hooks, line and lures, that I donated. As Jordan caught the first fish it was only fair that he won the prize so good on him for a job well done.

After the guys left we decided to move down the beach to get away from the lice, approx. 400-500 meters. We got the berley going again as everyone got there gear sorted and lines out. It was like the gods were watching as the next 8 hours was full on. There were approx. 50 Moki caught between us all and they were all between 1- 4+ kg. I managed to land 17 of them and it was one of the best nights I have had targeting them. Mole also did very well with at least 10, while the other guys caught the rest between them. It was also great to see so many guys keen to try the new Sonik rods. I think most of them certainly felt the difference when fishing with them and I appreciate all the positive feedback. Thanks guys.

Early the next morning just as the sun was rising, some good fish caught during the early hours

At approx. 7 am we decided to call it quits as everyone was pretty tired, so we packed up and headed back to carpark. After the standard photos of the fish we headed off when Scattershot and I decided to go over to Oriental bay for a kingy mission. We put out some live baits and then tried to have a snooze. Well we got no sleep so after fishing pretty hard for 24 hours straight we called it a day and headed home. I had a 2 ½ hour drive ahead of me and was pretty stuffed by the time I got home. All an all it was a great nights fishing and good to see the guys catching Moki and a few of them popping that cherry. I will definitely organise another trip and would like to make it a regular event (well every couple of months or so). The next get-together will be in a different/remote location and targeting a different species.

Mole with a few of his Moki, caught on the Sonik Bass rod (this is an exceptional rod)

Jaypeegee with his first legal Moki, caught on a Sonik SK3

Rockfisher(me) with some of my Moki caught on the Sonik SK4

Most of the fish we caught were released for next time, while a few were kept for family and friends.

Jimmy with his Moke and Tarakihi caught on the Sonik SK3

A good time had by all I’m sure, until the next fish….Action Bait & Tackle

Tight lines
sherppa

When I’m out in the boat I like to have two rods out. With one I’m targeting the larger fish and the other is a lighter set up that I use to target a broader range of fish size. The first rig is the one I use to target larger snapper. It is a two hook set up with a running sinker.

This rig is designed for targeting big snapper whether fishing from the boat or shore. It is a running rig, which means that it allows the shyer biting big snapper to pick up the bait and swim off with it without felling the pressure of the sinker as it takes the bait. With this rig you fish with a very light drag (or your reel in freespool) that enables line to be released as the fish swims off. Large snapper will often pick up a bait and swim 10 or 20m before finally eating it. This is when you would tighten up on the drag and put the pressure on to set the hook. A 2 hook pennel rig is used for the trace which enables the use of big baits such as whole pilchards. It also gives the added security that two hooks has as large snapper are easily capable of chewing through thick line and crushing hooks with the powerful jaws. When fishing from the beach an advantage of using the ball sinker is for what is called ‘walking the dog’. If there is a current running parallel to the beach you can use the running rig to cover a lot of ground as the rig will roll down the beach with the current. All you need to do is walk down the beach with your rod as the rig rolls a long the bottom. Doing this will mean you cover a lot more area and is good for prospecting. Your rig will drop into any holes or guts where fish tend to hold, which can then be targeted with a rig incorporating a breakout sinker it will hold in the newly discovered hole,

I usually bait this up with a squid tentacle, whole pilchard, strip of fresh kahawai or my favourite a fresh mackerel fillet. It pays to lower this rig to the bottom fairly slowly as it is quite easy for the for the hooks to loop back and tangle with the sinker and mainline as the sinker goes down faster than the baited hooks. The golden rule with sinkers is to use the lightest possible to get your baits down to where the fish are.

Material Needed:

• 2 x recurve or circle hooks (pick size based on bait you will be using)
• 1 x bead
• 1 x geni clip
• 1 x ball sinker (2 or more smaller ball sinkers can be used to create a more aerodynamic rig)

As i found the Snell Knot rather challenging to tie i have put together a quick video that shows it been tied. As you can see I’m not an expert knot tier but hopefully it helps people who might be struggling with it like i was.

How to tie a Snell Knot

The other rig i will have out is a common 2 hook dropper rig setup or ledger rig:

The loop at the top attaches to the mainline. Two hooks (i use smaller hooks and smaller baits than the previous rig) with lumo beads shown, i usually bait them with a thin strip of squid that will wave around in the current and look like a small bait fish. In this case i have used a kahawai lure in place of a sinker. This is great when the current isn’t so strong as it will get your baits down as well as give you another hook to catch fish on. Holding the rig just off the bottom means the lure will bounce on the sand with the swell puffing up sand and hopefully enticing a curious fish to investigate. I usually ‘sweeten’ the lures hook with a small piece of squid. I have found the kahawai lure on the bottom is good for picking up gurnard.

This rig is good as you pick up the smaller pan size snapper and we find it generally out fishes the other rig when it comes to quantities of fish caught.

View how to tie the rig here: Dropper Fishing Rig or Ledger Fishing Rig

Tight lines and shall see you all at the next weigh in.

Sherppa