Tilapia Fishing - Part 2

Some of my buddies asked me how to catch Black Tilapia as they don't seem to be swimming around like their cousins, the Red Tilapia. So I'm going to share some info here on how to catch them. Hope it helps.

The so called Black Tilapia is actually the pure breed Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). Their feeding behavior is different as some have observed, they do not come up to the surface but mostly filter feed & scavenge at the bottom. Therefore, to catch them, you'll have to present your bait at the bottom. I will refer to them as Tilapia here on.

LOCATION

How to know if there are tilapia? Well, I've caught them at metropolitan flood drains, water catchment areas, lakes, ponds & even shallow running streams. As this is a hardy species, they could adapt & roam around to any body of water that has food & shelter. Generally, I would advice to observe places like ponds with minimal current & having plenty of debris. Either natural vegetation or some rubbish. This is also partly the reason some people are not in favor of Tilapia fishing as they see this as trash fish unworthy for eating.

Another place that one can try would be payponds since some operators does stock Tilapia to help clean up the bottom of debris. Tilapia are voracious eaters, they would be feeding all the time but they are not stupid fishes. Some payponds that you could try:

(A) Fish valley, Semenyih

(B) EAK, Tmn Pertanian, Shah Alam

I'll elaborate more about the techniques to catch them later.

TACKLES, BAITS & RIG

Depends on what kind of bait you are using. My favorite would be to use an umbrella rig for bottom fishing. As shown in my earlier posting on how to construct an umbrella rig. As for bait, the simplest would be to use groundbait (dedak). Rig up the bait to form a small oval shaped ball. I normally would use basic dedak with some added corn flour & add a little more fish meal to make a better attractant.

You may want to add a small sinker just before the branching out of the hooks. This will give you more casting distance but won't spook the fishes too much. Do use tiny hooks, small tackles. Main line use clear color 6 to 10lb mono line.

Since Tilapia is a small species, found mostly in the 500g to 1.5kg size. For best experience, use an Ultra light set up. This would be 6ft rods, 1000 size reels & tackles (swivels & clips) in the 25 to 30lb rating. Use clear mono line of 6 to 10lb rating.

TECHNIQUES

Alright, so you've found the place with Tilapia & you've got the rig & baits ready. You cast the bait out from the banks & park your rod. Remember to keep a tight line. Tilapia is a shy taker, it will slowly suck in the bait then spit it out repeatedly. Keeping line tight will give you an indicator that something is messing with your bait. Subtle signs like faint line movements. If you are fishing with an umbrella rig, you've got 4 balls of groundbait. This will give the tilapia plenty to chew on. Once it is comfortable & happily pecking the bait, it will want to take larger bites & that's when it starts to mouth the entire ball & move with it. Your line will start to rise & drop. You as the angler will only have a few chance to strike. Striking too early will miss the mouth. Striking too late the tilapia had spit it out. So timing is crucial as well as a test of your reflex & patience.

So go out there & catch some tilapia. Have fun!