post-2-13220488278864.jpg 500.98K
0 downloadsAs in many other places around the World the Pacu was introduced in Thailand from South America many years ago as a food fish due to it's quick growth rate and highly edible flesh.
However, as with many species that are introduced in this way they have taken over in many places - now unfortunately from a freshwater fishermans point of view they can be a real pain in the ass to deal with.
They're from the same family as the piranha and tend to behave in the same way - they move around the water a fair bit and when they are on the feed everything else stops. They attack other slower moving fish such as carp (Pla Nai) - in lakes where Pacu are present many of the other species caught have had most of their fins bitten by the Pacu.
The Pacu can get up to 30kg in weight in their native environment if given enough food (they basically never stop eating - this is one of the problems with having them present in fishing parks where food is limited - these guys have big teeth and are well 'ard...) - anything over 10kg in Thailand is considered a good fish.
Fighting characteristics:-
When hooked they nearly always make a run for cover, although if they are near cover they'll often stay put and swim in circles for a bit. Runs tend to zig zag and be quite fast, however the fight is often over quickly as the shape of the fish means that as you lift your rod to play them they find it difficult to deal with pressure from above. Therefore when playing them it's all about keeping your rod high and steering them away from snags.
Rigs:-
These guys have awesome teeth that would make many a dentist go week at the knees, the teeth look very similar to a humans. The teeth evolved to crack nuts over in their South American native environment, this should give you an idea of just how powerful the teeth and jaws are. Because of this you either need to use a very sturdy wire trace of 30kg or more (and keep a close eye on it if you catch them regularly) or long shank hook to stop them biting on the line. The latter method is preferred as they tend to grab the bait in their teeth first and give it a shake to see if it's attached to anything, they are more likely to feel a wire trace and let go than a long shank hook on lighter line.
Baits:-
I've read many times that these things are veges but the ones I’ve caught have nearly always been on meat or fish. In fact, the meatier the better, Chicken gizzards are very effective. Chicken liver is also excellent but can be difficult to keep on the hook. Banana works well but again difficult to keep on the hook. Had moderate success with three almond nuts on a small hair rig but the fish need to be introduced to them over time. Interestingly where they have got used to eating meat using flavoured bread fished on the bottom will normally avoid them, however no other fish will put their head down to feed on it whilst Pacu are around as they’ll get their fins bitten!
I have a feeling that any small silver fish pop upped off the bottom with a polystyrene ball will also be very effective, will try it and re-post.
As with all of these guides they are just my limited experiences, please help the Fishing in Thailand community and post your tips and tricks to target these fish in this thread.
