Return of the kahawai to the Far North

It is well documented that kahawai took a hammering from purse-seiners in the 1970s and ‘80s, resulting in the massive schools of Kiwi folklore disappearing from our inshore areas. Since then, they have made a significant comeback – albeit somewhat precarious and patchy, with some areas enjoying re-established and healthy kahawai populations, but others not so much.

Having fished right around our coastline, I struggle to think of anywhere I haven’t had the pleasure of catching a kahawai, but nowhere – emphasis on nowhere – have I encountered kahawai so consistently and in such numbers as Northland. While they’re never enormous like the 2.7- to 3.2-kilo (6-7lb) specimens I’ve regularly caught at East Cape, there is a good cross-section of sizes, from healthy five-pounders right through to ‘lollipop’-sized juvenile fish still exhibiting yellow spots (known as kopapa to Maori).

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I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that after many years, having spent weeks and weeks of fishing the beaches, rocks and wharves of Northland, I’ve succeeded in catching at least one kahawai (if not many), on every day spent fishing there.

If it’s not clear by now, they are super-abundant up there, also supported by the different ways my fishing mates and I have caught them in the widely varying locations. These include: on spinners; using stray-lined baits; surfcasting the Ninety Mile Beach; rock fishing on exposed ocean ledges; fishing rickety old wharves in tidal harbour backwaters; on kahawai live-baits meant for kingfish; on big kingfish poppers and stick-baits; and on large dead baits earmarked for snapper. They are also a top-notch saltwater-fly species, making us the envy of many an overseas visitor to our shores.

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On days when they are particularly voracious – and even downright annoying when attempting to catch other species – we have held spur-of-the-moment competitions to see who can catch kahawai in the most outrageous way. A couple of the more memorable ones include a bare, unweighted 4/0 hook, and a ragged, broken party balloon rigged on a large live-bait hook.

None of this is meant to indicate any sort of contempt or overfamiliarity with kahawai on my part — kahawai feeding frenzies never fail to excite, and besides, their very presence can also be the key to successfully catching other desirable species.

But first, let me talk about one of the most exciting ways I’ve caught kahawai in Northland. Just inside the mouth of the Parengarenga Harbour is a very impressive area that sees huge volumes of water carried in and out of this enormous estuary as the tide changes. On the northern and southern sides of the entrance are beautiful white sand beaches that drop off fairly quickly into the main channel, with a wicked current running along them, except at the very top and bottom of the tide. This is magic water that has produced some special fish over the years (notably some very big trevally on outgoing tides).

I’ve spent some wonderful days fishing here with my mates, with our preference being to fish the northern bank, gaining access by inflatable. Knowing the value of berley here, I always place a rod spike with a berley bag attached in the shallows at the edge of the channel so the current takes a nice berley trail downstream.

When kahawai are present, it is truly astonishing how quickly their shadowy forms start appearing across the white sand bottom, eagerly charging around like headless chickens as they compete with others for what’s on offer. Then, a little later, their numbers can build up to the dozens and they will brazenly attack the berley bag in knee-deep water.

This presents an unmissable opportunity to stand amongst them with light spinning gear and hook kahawai after kahawai as others literally buzz around your feet. Where else in the world? Sometimes I don’t think we stop to consider how lucky we are…

The kahawai’s abundance is also extremely useful. For example, I like to head out on a long tramp into a spot knowing that my preparation is complete so I can focus solely on my fishing after arrival. But, where Northland and kahawai are concerned, I sometimes make a concession: there are some places and times where carrying bait into a spot is unnecessary, because I know – repeat KNOW – that kahawai will be present. Consequently, all I need is a spinner to catch them, and from there they can be used as fresh bait for big snapper, live-baits for kingfish etc. How good is that?

Given everything I’ve said to date, it won’t surprise you to know that kahawai play a key role in the local food chain. In addition to preying on several baitfish species, including smaller specimens of their own kind, whitebait, krill and crustaceans, in turn they are eaten by larger predators, with kingfish and large sharks, in particular, following them around.

It is therefore fortunate for anglers that the strongly-swimming kahawai also make very effective live baits, with their particularly powerful distress vibrations drawing predators from hundreds of metres away.

Better still, thanks to the abundance and range of kahawai sizes in Northland, it is usually easy enough to deploy the right-sized bait to maximise your chances. This can be particularly important on kingfish, as they will reject live baits that are too big. So, if 10kg ‘rats’ are the order of the day, deploy smaller live kahawai baits – in the 500g to 1kg range, say – and Bob’s your uncle. As for very small kahawai, they make excellent live baits for john dory around the harbour wharves. In other parts of the country, this sort of flexibility is simply not possible.

Indeed, most of the desirable inshore species in Northland are partial to fresh fish baits so can be caught on kahawai, especially when freshly caught in-situ and turned into excellent strip and dead baits for many different purposes. For example, we: cut the fillets into small strips to stray-line for marauding trevally; use large strip baits and ‘steak baits’ for snapper; and deploy mediumsized strip baits for traditional surfcasting bottom baits. Small, whole specimens can be cast out for kingfish, while larger models often successfully attract big sharks. As you can see, the versatility of kahawai as a bait – dead or alive – is almost endless.

However, whilst kahawai is a relatively easy bait to use, some basic tricks will help ensure you get the most from it:

• The very best and most effective dead bait generally comes from smaller kahawai – fish around the 500g mark (kopapa) are ideal.

• Kahawai have large, stubborn scales – remove them from the whole fish with your bait knife before using it for bait. This avoids the possibility of scales sticking on the end of your hook, preventing effective hook-ups.

• Don’t bleed kahawai you intend to use for bait; the presence of blood in the flesh is to your advantage in terms of maximising its olfactory appeal in the water.

• Larger kahawai can still provide good strip baits, but the fillets are typically thicker than needed for effective fishing. So, when cutting it, don’t cut right down to the frame – take only as much as you need and don’t be afraid to leave fish flesh on the frame. You can use what’s left for bait or berley later if necessary. Nothing need go to waste: kahawai heads make good baits for sharks and big snapper, and the frames can be dangled into the tide to create a berley trail.

Overall, you’d have to say that much of the Northland fishing scene revolves around the availability of kahawai. Not only does this species provide a fantastic and exhilarating catch in its own right, it also has incredible versatility as a baitfish. Consequently, those anglers who realise the potential of kahawai best, tend to realise more of Northland’s land-based fishing potential.

   This article is reproduced with permission of   
New Zealand Fishing News

October 2017 - Andy Macleod
Re-publishing elsewhere is prohibited

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