If you’re looking for a fight, look no further than these battling bruisers
ONE of our most common species and well distributed right around the UK and Ireland, ballan wrasse are a muscular fish that have evolved to live in turbulent surging water adjacent to hard structures. Pound for pound, they fight exceptionally hard.
WHEN & WHERE
In mild winters, wrasse can be taken almost all-year round, especially in deeper water o the south-western coasts of the West Country, Wales, the west of Scotland and around much of the Irish coast.
That said, wrasse are very susceptible to cold inshore water temperatures, especially when this occurs as a sudden drop. In colder winters they move oshore into much deeper water with a more constant temperature.
The best period for wrasse fishing is from April through to November, with peak time for big fish being from August to November.
Wrasse inhabit a wide range of ground features, being found around pier and jetty supports, alongside harbour walls and among kelp weed beds. Their natural home, though, is along the edge of rocks at the base of seafacing clis. The bigger wrasse are territorial and take up station in favoured areas and work a set area back and forth searching for food. Smaller fish tend to be more tolerant of each other and are happy to compete.
Tides are not overly important for wrasse to feed, but they do like a little flow in the tide, meaning they feed best during the running flood and ebb tide. The flood tide, though, is often the best. Calmer seas are needed for angler safety, but wrasse do like some movement in the sea to feed at their best. Very heavy, stormy seas will push the fish out deeper and it takes a few days for them to return inshore as things settle down. Coloured water is also not conducive to good wrasse fishing.
They will feed even in bright daylight, but as is so often the case with fish close inshore, more subdued days with cloud cover will tend to fish best.
Ballan wrasse fight exceptionally hard for their size
TACKLE &RIGS
Due to the power of wrasse, you need a strong rod such as a 2-4oz bass rod with some guts in the lower mid-section and butt. One with a semi-supple (not soft) tip often has the edge when fishing with braid. It adds a hint more sensitivity to your overall bite detection and your ability to ‘feel’ the lead weight as it is lifted and dropped and banging bottom if you are leger fishing on a tight line.
Add a 4000-sized fixed-spool reel loaded with 30lb braid (pictured above) and you have the ideal combination for putting real pressure on a big wrasse.
An easy way to rig for bottom-feeding wrasse is to tie a three-way swivel to the end of the mainline. Add 20 inches of 18lb mono to the bottom eye of the swivel and tie on the weight, usually a ½oz to 2oz bomb, to this. The 12-inch hook trace is tied to the middle swivel eye and should be 20lb to 30lb fluorocarbon for its abrasion resistance. Hook size depends on the bait size, but use hooks between size 1/0 and 4/0 depending on the fish targeted. Mustad Viking 79515 hooks are the choice for the majority of wrasse anglers.
You can use old spark plugs, or old nuts and bolts, to save on weights. In very snaggy water, use a short, weak link of 15lb line to the weight to make it sacrificial should it get stuck, to save fish and tackle.
Float-fishing is often the best way to target wrasse as the bait is suspended up o the bottom and acts naturally as the float lifts and drops in the wave surge. Slide a 5mm bead on to the mainline, followed by a cigar-shaped float, a round ball-weight big enough to cock the float, another 5mm bead, and then tie on a size 2 swivel. To the swivel, add 15 inches of 20-30lb fluorocarbon and the hook. Above the top bead, tie on a five-turn grinner-type stop knot using Powergum or mono. This can be slid up or down the line to set the float depth.
Crabs are the best bait
Pass hook through rear and back of the crab
BEST BAIT CHOICES
The top choice for catching big wrasse is either a whole hardback crab about the size of a 50p piece, or half a bigger crab. Wrasse have big teeth, and bait presentation is not really an issue. They just chomp the crab down to size, usually in the first hit.
Pass the hook through the rear belly and back of a whole crab and leave the hook point clear. However, if you are missing bites, take the legs o a smaller crab, leaving just three or four legs on the one side. Put the hook through the body then tie the legs up the shank of the hook with bait elastic. This forces the wrasse to take from the hook end.
Lugworms and ragworms are good baits too, but tend to interest the smaller wrasse. Fish bait is not overly e ective for inshore wrasse, but a sandeel can sometimes be a good option, especially in the autumn. Other baits such as limpets, mussels and prawns will also catch fish.
TOP TACTICS
When fishing o piers, jetties and harbour walls, the wrasse will be tight into the wall itself, or close to the structural supports, unless rougher ground extends out from the wall. Keep the tackle and baits near the wall or structure for the best results.
If there is rougher ground present extending seawards, then thoroughly search this area, working away from the wall as fewer anglers will fish this ground, and it gives you a chance of a better fish.
Breakwaters made from big stones are brilliant for wrasse that live in the holes between the stones. To fish this e ectively, you need to risk tackle and have the bait in and around the holes towards the base of the rocks. This is where the bigger fish live.
Float-fishing is ideal for this, aiming to set the bait to fish 12 inches above the holes in the rocks. Be prepared for savage takes and
A lovely example of a ballan wrasse
This is typical wrasse country keep the fish out of the holes, if possible.
If the light levels are bright when fishing from rock ledges into deeper water, then fish a legered bait. If it is cloudy, the float is often better as the fish are higher up in the water. Look for areas where the rocks cut back in towards the cli s. Wrasse love deeper gullies, and these are again the ideal place to work a float-fished crab, as are undercut rock ledges.
You’ll usually catch two or three wrasse from one small section of rock, then bites slow and it is time to move on to the next bit. If you keep catching small wrasse, then a bigger fish is unlikely. The bigger fish tend to come from small holes, gullies cut back into the rock, or from submerged big boulders at the base of the cli edge. These small areas are easier for the single big wrasse to police, and keep the smaller wrasse away. Identify these holding holes and you’ll see a major increase in the size of wrasse you catch. ■