Tackle Tactics » Tips-Techniques » Sweetwater-Impoundments-Brackish » Targeting Toga

Targeting Toga

By Robbie Wells

I love to chase saratoga, especially the wild fish and the environment they are endemic too is normally spectacular and quite different to a lot of freshwater systems, mainly consisting of massive overhanging paperbarks and eucalyptus trees, with log jams and undercuts on every gouged bend in the creek. This is a testament to the enormous amount of water present during flood times. Most of my sweetwater canoe and camping adventures are around the Central Queensland region.

The southern saratoga (Scleropages leichardti) are native only to the Fitzroy River system and all of its tributaries, including the Dawson, Isaac, MacKenzie, Donn and Connors Rivers, and Fairbairn Dam (Lake Marraboon) in Central Queensland. In recent times, the southern saratoga has been stocked into various locations, where they have established great breeding populations. Dams or impoundments like Queensland's Borumba Dam and Lake Cania are a great examples.

Saratoga are the true barramundi (aboriginal for large scaled fish) and was their common name until quite recent times. The name barramundi was also applied to the Queensland lungfish (also called the Ceratodus), which look similar to saratoga, both in the water and out. It is believed that perhaps a mispronunciation of the name Ceratodus and some confusion on what fish was what led to the name "Ceratoga" or "Saratoga", which appears to have stuck.

This I find interesting as both have evolved and are our closest dinosaur natives and also both have a bony palette on their bottom jaw, which is an angler's nemesis with many a fish lost from lack of hook penetration. Then In the mid-1980's a collaboration between the Qld Fisheries and Qld Seafood Industry named certain species common names to  avoid confusion, depending on where you were located, so officially changed their name from barramundi to saratoga.

In Australia we are fortunate enough to have two species. The northern Saratoga (Scleropages jardini) are found from the Gulf of Carpentaria right across the top end into Western Australia, with a few small isolated pockets on the cape. To the untrained eye both toga species look the same, however upon closer inspection they are quite different.

How does all of the above help an angler? Like any species, the more you know and learn about the targeted species; feeding patterns, locations, bite times etc., the more successful your trips will likely be. Saratoga feed mainly on invertebrates, especially freshwater shrimp, small gudgeons and rainbow fish, while their diet will also include terrestrial animals and insects, like grasshoppers, bugs, cicadas, spiders, etc. With pinpoint accuracy they spectacularly launch above the waterline to pick food from some brush or overhanging branches. This diet can vary from river to river or when flows and water levels fall during the drier parts of the year. The diet of the saratoga seems void of vegetation and consists of the above feeder fish and terrestrial insects, however they will eat mice, frogs, snakes and lizards or forage on the bottom for worms and crayfish.

Toga love timber snags, however depending on the time of the day they will also be hard against the banks, sitting in a shadow line. With their top facing eyes and forward jaw they are very aggressive and efficient surface feeders, so you will find them willingly cruising the surface for an easy meal. By far my favourite structure is an overhanging paperbark, with its green brush hanging half in and half out of the water. This is great cover for ambushing in the water, with the bonus of being able to pick off any potential food from the brush.

To be successful we need to mimic our target species' food source or type of food they feed on and also target the time of the day when the fish feed. This makes saratoga an ideal species to target, with their aggressive nature and readiness to strike artificial presentations, instantly engulfing surface poppers, hard bodies, soft plastics and spinnerbaits at will.

There are options aplenty and with toga being very active during the low light periods, surface presentations like ZMan 2.75" Finesse FrogZ and 4" Pop FrogZ work well, along with poppers and walkers. It adds to the excitement of sight fishing, watching them engulf your offering. It's something else. Watching a toga cruising along the surface and accelerating towards your lure as you tease it with a faster retrieve... they can't resist it! Using low stretch monofilament line, like Platypus Lo-Stretch, is also another little trick when using artificial presentations. It helps minimize jump offs and pulling hooks from that bottom bony jaw as it has a little give when they start going all aerial on you.

By far the most effective sub-surface presentation for me has been soft plastics, with the ZMan 3" Minnowz and TT Lures 1/8oz 3/0 HeadlockZ HD jighead combo being dynamite. It can be fished in most scenarios, from fast flow to the deeper holes and snags, with the advantage of floating across the shallows or dropping slowing through the strike zone. What blows me away the most is the hookup and landing rate, where 90% of the toga  landed are hooked in the top of the jaw, the softest part of their mouth, so jump offs are so minimal that you are surprised when you do lose the odd one. My go-to colours are Houdini or Pinfish, with the newer colour Sexy Penny really taking its fair share now. The same with Space Guppy colour in the ZMan 3" Slim SwimZ evening up the colour to catch ratios.

Like any species, on the day it's good to mix it up, however the standard slow roll is a good start until you spend more time reading the water. Being an opportunistic feeder, getting your cast in the right spot is paramount and always remember to use the whole water column to maximize your chances. There could be great structure 3-4 metres below holding fish, but if you are only fishing the top two metres you won't be in the zone. Even count each second as it drops to ensure you are covering the water column. First cast let the lure drop for one second, next cast two seconds and so on, working a ten metre section of water as you go.

Where to cast. So read the water, shadows and surroundings and remember what's above the ground normally continues below the waterline. I'm normally in a canoe, dragging it from pool to pool or off the bank, so I don't run a sounder. When fishing a surface presentation remember that saratoga like to hone in on the splash and vibrations, however they can spook easily if you cast too close to them. That's where the Finesse FrogZ come into their own as they can land soft and with a high rod tip and a fast burn you can really get those little legs burbling. Toga love them and rigged on a 2/0 TT Lures ChinlockZ the hook up rate is again solid with the single hook.

Of course the other bonus of fishing such country is by-catch, which is always welcome, including fork tail catfish, sooty grunter and the elusive leathery grunter, commonly confused with a lost Barcoo grunter as the leatheries are endemic to certain creeks or even certain stretches of water... but that's another story.

So next time you are looking for an adventure, do some research and if you are venturing to new areas it's all about the adventure and the journey, while also maximizing your chances for a few fish as a bonus.

How Good's Australia

Gear List

ZMan 3" MinnowZ
TT Lures HeadlockZ HD jigheads - 1/8oz 3/0

ZMan 4" Pop FrogZ
TT Lures ChinlockZ jigheads - 4/0 - 6/0

ZMan 2.75" Finesse FrogZ
TT Lures ChinlockZ jigheads - 2/0

TT Lures Spinnerbaits
TT Lures Jig Spinners