Peacock Bass at Lake
Wilson
By Stan Wright
Heavy rains raised the level of Lake Wilson by 12 feet, and dropped
the water temperature into the low 70s. The peacock bass moved from
patrolling the shoreline to chasing shad in the deeper water.

Due to the cooler water temperatures the fish have been less than
aggressive and only stayed on the surface for a short time. We called
it the "five second rule". If you could get your lure
in the boiling water of the feeding frenzy within 5 seconds, you
hooked a fish. If not, you just had to wait for the next time the
shad were driven to the surface and hope it was within casting distance
of the boat.
What a difference 4 days and a 4 degree rise in water temperature
can make. The peacock bass were chasing shad on the surface all
around the boat. In every direction the water boiled with feeding
fish. We were getting strikes and chases on almost every cast.
Chris and I started fishing at 4:00 pm. The water temperature was
74 degrees. For weeks the fishing had been slow. Peacock Bass are
tropical fish and totally shut down when the water temp. drops below
70.


Light fly rods are just the thing for these
small peacock bass. Stan Wright has been
fishing Lake Wilson for over 30 years.


Chris Wright prefers ultra-light spinning
tackle to test his skills against Hawaii's
peacock bass.
I was using a 5wt fly rod with a small chartreuse/white Clouser.
Chris had his ultra-light spinning rod loaded with 2# test line
and was tossing a 2 inch Senko. Pink, White, Green, or Tan, color
didn\'t seem to matter.
The tukes (peacock bass) ranged in size from 8 to 15 inches. Less
than 2 pounds. They were fat and healthy fish, striking hard and
fighting all the way to the boat. The perfect size for our ultra-light
tackle.
When the sun set, their feeding ceased. I was ready for a rest
from the constant action. I don't know how many fish we landed,
well over 25 I guess. More important, I was fishing with my son
and we got some nice pictures to remember our special time together.


Andrew and Jesse pose with a Tuke
(peacock bass) caught in Lake Wilson
on the island of Oahu.


This 2 pound peacock bass was the
perfect match for Andrews 4# test
spinning tackle.

The schooling fish averaged from 1 to 3 pounds and were really
exciting to catch on light tackle.
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