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Fly Fishing With Robert Jarvis
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Silver Knights
Copyright © 2002
Robert Jarvis
If you have ever read an American fly fishing magazine you would have noticed how large their species of Tarpon or Silver Kings grow (in excess of 75kgs), the Australian variety on the other hand would make an ANSA record on fly if they weighed in at 3kgs. Queensland Tarpon or as I call them “Silver Knights” (Silver to reflect their distinctive mirror like appearance and Knights because the Knights of the round table protected themselves with an impenetrable armour) have a mouth of bone which at times seems impenetrable. Recently I decided to target Silver Knights in an attempt to work out an effective fly pattern. In Southern Queensland they prefer to feed vigorously in the warmer months of the year on a diet of small fish and shrimps. They visit estuarine systems, canal developments and sometimes become trapped in lagoons. I started by fishing a well known Tarpon Lagoon with Crazy Charlies, Clousers and Woolly buggers with mixed results. I then tied a small Guppy streamer on a size 4 hook and landed 3 Silver Knights in about 2 hours. After releasing the third Tarpon I started to think that I was on to something with this Guppy fly. Now this well known Tarpon Lagoon sees a lot of fly fisherman and that is why I believe I was doing so poorly using Crazy Charlies and Clousers. Heck, these fish have very good vision and even better memories. On subsequent fly testing trips I used different hooks in an attempt to find a hook that can penetrate the bony mouth and hold on to fish that take the Guppy fly. Fly Rod In well protected Lagoons a 4 weight trout rod would be a lot of fun, but if you are in an exposed area such as the mouth of an estuary a 9 weight rod is the pick mainly so as to be able to cast in the wind. Fly Reel From my experiences landing 1kg Tarpon, a trout type reel is all that is needed. These fish will not take out your backing unless you are using very light tippets. Fly Line A basic, floating, weight forward fly line matched to your rod weight is all that is needed. I use a Scientific Anglers Air Cell 6wt floating fly line and find it to be a pleasure to use. The Leader The leader for tarpon is very important as I discovered after landing a few that had taken the fly deep into their mouths. Tarpon have sand paper like teeth and can chafe through your tippet when they head shake. The butt section can be any standard salt water arrangement - 1 metre of 10 kg mono. The class tippet section which I have found to be able to cope with the chafe problem is 1 metre of 6 kg Fluorocarbon. The tippet needs to be this strong so as to give yourself a chance to set the hook into their bony mouths. Tarpon Flies The normal fly patterns for tarpon would be Crazy Charlies, Clousers, Sliders while in heavily fly fished areas Woolly Buggers and Streamer patterns should be given a chance on your leader. The Guppy fly I have developed may be of some use to others but remember fish bite on different things in different locations so find out what they are feeding on and tie something to match. The Guppy Fly materials: Hook - Black Magic J size 4, Body material - Polar aire in Olive and White, Thread - 4 pound mono, Eye - 4mm stick on eye Tying procedure : Bind a tapered hank of white Polar aire to the underside of the hook near the eye of the hook. Then bind a tapered hank of Olive Polar aire to the top of the hook near the eye. Tie 2 strips of holographic flashabou to each side of the fly to create a lateral line and whip finish. Stick the eyes on to the mono thread and use 5 minute epoxy to coat the eyes and create a head. Now grip all of the polar aire with your holding hand and pull back to give the fly a Guppy shape, while still holding the polar aire coat the polar aire with Flexcement from the back of the head to the end of the hook shank. When the Flexcement has dried you can trim the tail of your Guppy fly to suit. I usually only allow the tail to extend past the bend of the hook about 10mm. Fishing for Silver Kings I find that the Silver Kings seem to come on the bite in my local haunt about 5.00pm and stay active for about 2 hours then fade away. You will see when they are active as they feed on the surface and snip the surface of the water with their tails - this is the prime time to cast a fly at them. A slow steady retrieve seems to be the best and keeps you in contact with the fly. When a Tarpon takes your fly it will feel like a tap on the fly line, strike hard and fast as they spit the fly even faster. You will know when you have a Tarpon as they jump out of the water immediately and continue to jump all through the fight with leader chafing head shakes that make a Barra look a bit tired. I find myself during the fight pointing the rod at the fish and strike several times in an attempt to set the hook I have had so many Tarpon drop off the hook at my feet that it is not funny. Tarpon are a very fragile fish and make a better game fish than a meal so if you are going to take a photo, be very quick, as they die if kept out of the water for very long or gripped firmly or tagged or……… Remember, if you put them back in the lagoon from where they came then they will always be there to try for again and develop a fly to suit your area. You never know, you might even catch a Giant Herring. I haven’t been so lucky yet but I’m working on it.
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