THE YELLOWTAIL SNAPPER
By Capt. Gregg
TACKLE AND BAITS: Undersize fish in the shallows will greedily hit nearly any bait or lure. Yellowtails of decent size, however, are almost always caught in out- side reef areas.They are among the wariest of biters, generally requiring lighter lines, leaders, hooks and sinkers than the angler would really like to use. Regulars mostly try to get by with spinning tackle and 15-pound line, but on many days must go to 12-pound lines or smaller, to produce or sustain any action. Small dead baits—cut fish, cut squid and pieces of shrimp catch the mostYellowtails because those baits are similar in size and buoyancy to the ground chum that is used to lure them close and turn on their appetites. In many areas of the Bahamas and Caribbean,Yellowtail are caught by trolling a variety of lures, or by casting with small jigs, and even flies. Best luck anywhere is likely to come at night.
Pound-for-pound, among the best of reef fishes. Because most are hooked high in the water column, they usually make long, strong runs.Yellowtail are masters at cutting lines on the edge of a dropoff, or fouling them on high reef growth.