[BigDaddyHub]

Doing a little research on a "dream getaway" in the South. Would love to hang into a nice Peacock and don;t have to fly to Brazil to do it. Was just wondering of anyone has ever fished the canals or lakes in the Miami area?

[agn54]

I grew up in Miami and spent alot of time fishing the canals down there as a kid. Peacocks are awesome fish and fight like a bulldog. The peacocks in Miami are butterflly peacock which don't get as big as the amazon monsters. They can get up to around 6 pounds or so but are usually 3-4 lbs. Keep in mind that a 3lb peacock will fight harder than a 6lb bass and their hits are ferocious. I never got one on a fly since I moved out of Miami before I took up flyfishing. I used to get alot of them on large top water plugs, buzz baits and Bomber Long A's. Large poppers and unweighted streamers in bright colors would work great for them since they feed on the other non-natives (tilapia, cichlids, etc). I almost always caught them right along the banks of canals rather than in the open. A couple of times I saw large schools of them swimming down the middle of the canal but they were on the move and could never get them to hit.

The canals and lakes along and around the Turnpike can have great peacock fishing. I use to fish the canals under the Turnpike overpasses and the lakes which are in the center of the exit ramps. The great thing about these is anyone can access them. Man, this brings back memories.

[lykos33]

If you do get to go South, do not forget the snook and reds on the salt side of things. Snook are kinda like the peacocks in that a small 3-5 lb snook will make you think he's a 10 lb bass. I never got a peacock as when I fished that far south in Florida , I was always after snook and such. Good luck, it should be a memory of a lifetime for you and yours!

[smokinprice]

can u smuggle me in? I fit nicely in a suitcase and need a vacation bad!

[BigDaddyHub]

I have taken three snook, and loved every minute of that, but for some reason, I just WANT a peacock. I knew there no speckled peacocks, but a butterfly would be just fine. If a 3 lb peacock can fit ( yes, I said "fit") like 5lb smallies, I'm in! From everything I have read, they prefer the ambush vantage bank cover and structure provide. I would love to take one on a 7wt. Think that would be too light?

Jeff, if you ball up nice and tight I may be able to fit you in between the canoe and the float tube !!

[David Legg]

I've caught peacocks in the freshwater canals when I used to live in South Florida. They take pretty much anything a largemouth will take, but are a little more scrappy, in my opinion. Nice looking fish... bass family's version of the brook trout.

[BigDaddyHub]

Aren't they actually cichlids? Not sure...

[agn54]

Yea they're cichlids and not actually bass. A 7wt would be fine for them. David is right that they will most things a bass will, but I always had better luck on top water of just subsurface. I never heard of anyone catching them on worms or bouncing jigs on the bottom but I guess those kinds of jigs or similar type of flies could work.

[BigDaddyHub]

Just read an article that gives the same info. Author of the work says that like most cichlids, they are surface feeders and rarely if ever feed below temperate zones on or near the surface. Would love to chuck some Dahlberg's at them. I hear they are edible with a certain sweetness to the flesh. Ever eat one?

[smokinprice]

I have taken three snook, and loved every minute of that, but for some reason, I just WANT a peacock. I knew there no speckled peacocks, but a butterfly would be just fine. If a 3 lb peacock can fit ( yes, I said "fit") like 5lb smallies, I'm in! From everything I have read, they prefer the ambush vantage bank cover and structure provide. I would love to take one on a 7wt. Think that would be too light?

Jeff, if you ball up nice and tight I may be able to fit you in between the canoe and the float tube !!

No problem. I am so there!

[David Legg]

Just read an article that gives the same info. Author of the work says that like most cichlids, they are surface feeders and rarely if ever feed below temperate zones on or near the surface. Would love to chuck some Dahlberg's at them. I hear they are edible with a certain sweetness to the flesh. Ever eat one?

I never have.

[BigDaddyHub]

Well, Jeff, just dig yourself out of the drifts, trudge across the New Tundra that is the Mid Atlantic, and head this way. Now remember, I'm a county employee and have just enough bail money for myself, so it YOU get us into trouble with the locals, you're on your own. And with that northern accent, YOU 'RE DEFINATELY on your own! HA!

[agn54]

Just read an article that gives the same info. Author of the work says that like most cichlids, they are surface feeders and rarely if ever feed below temperate zones on or near the surface. Would love to chuck some Dahlberg's at them. I hear they are edible with a certain sweetness to the flesh. Ever eat one?

I bet Dalhbergs would work great. I would often get them on bombers by twitching them at the surface so they just dove below the surface and floated back up, much like a dahlberg would do. I never ate one but heard they were alright. The bass in South Florida tend to have a lot of mercury but I don't know about the peacocks. With all the great eating saltwater fish down there, I never ate anythig from freshwater since we didn't have speckled perch or great catfishing like places further north.

[BigDaddyHub]

Mercury is a major concern in some waters here in Ky, especially near the coalfield regions. The mining industry took a lot of crap for it for years until some very wise scientists determined most of it was occuring naturally in the streams and lakes and was just building into testable levels. E-coli is a greater concern due to the run off from area farms. But I digress.

During the course of my research and web-surfing, I have come across some great photos of peacocks. I quickly noticed the colors of the fish varied greatly, not jsut from genetics, but from the waters individual fish were taken. Have you found this to be the case?

[agn54]

Yea, some of the peacocks I have caught were alot more colorful than others, especially with the red on their belly. I think it has to do with the composition and color of the water. In the darker water of alot of residential canals they seem to be very red, at least in the particular canals I was fishing where the water was pretty dark green. It is similar for our inshore saltwater fish. Alot of the speckled trout on the west coast tend to be very colorful with yellow and orange colors in their mouths, especially when the water is really tannicy, while alot of the trout I have gotten on the east coast where the salinity tends to be higher and the water clearer, they are very silvery with little or no yellowing. Same goes for reds, reds in the tannicy water of the gulf of mexico get really bronze and some of the ones I have gotten on the east coast, especially in the inlets where the water is of course very salty, are alot more silver than red.