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Fish Pictures from Australia

20 photos of fish caught in the Pacific and Indian oceans around Australia

Toss out a lure in the fish-eat-fish waters of Australia, and you never know what will chomp down on it. Accordingly, here are 20 images of fish that wound up on lures thrown by me or others with whom I fished. I hope you enjoy these fishy portraits.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Narrowbarred Spanish Mackerel

Shark Bay, Western Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

Think king mackerel of U.S. waters — on steroids. Found throughout the Indo-Pacific, the narrowbarred reaches just over 100 pounds.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Giant Trevally

Great Barrier Reef, Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

Widely acknowledged to be the toughest game fish of tropical Pacific reefs, these ferocious members of the jack family (Carangidae) grow to more than 150 pounds — easily large enough to wrench an angler’s arms from their sockets.

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Fish Pictures from Australia

Shark Mackerel

Abrolhos Island, Western Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

Colorful shark mackerels sport a distinct double lateral line. They may grow to just under 30 pounds, and derive their name from their flesh sometimes bearing an ammonia-like smell reminiscent of sharks.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Coral Trout

Great Barrier Reef, Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

These long, colorful and very aggressive groupers of Indo-Pacific shallow reefs are never shy about whacking topwater lures.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Rankin Cod

Carnarvon, Western Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

Found throughout the Indian Ocean over moderately deep reefs, this grouper is popular with anglers in many areas.

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Fish Pictures from Australia

Emperor

Great Barrier Reef, Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

Emperors are a large family (Lethrinidae) of relatively shallow bottom fishes often favoring partially-sandy areas. Fine eating they’re important commercially. This one hit a Sebile Magic Swimmer.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Houndfish

Cape York Peninsula, northern Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

Called longtoms in Australia, these members of the needlefishes (family Belonidae) can grow to several feet in length. They live and feed at the surface in nearshore waters.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Baldchin Groper

Abrolhos Island, Western Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

Though Aussies called it a groper, the baldie is a member of the (always tasty) wrasse family, hence its resemblance to wrasses that anglers seek in the U.S. Northeast — the tautog, the Southeast — the hogfish, and California — the sheephead.

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Fish Pictures from Australia

Blacksaddled Coral Trout

Great Barrier Reef, Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

More properly called the blacksaddled coralgrouper, this little pup struck a Stick Shadd lure. The distinctly patterned species grows much larger — to 50 pounds or so.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Humphead Maori Wrasse

Great Barrier Reef, Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

This monster among wrasses may reach upwards of 400 pounds. Locomotive-powerful when hooked on lures in its preferred thick-reef habitat, the species is vulnerable to overfishing, and is now protected in many areas.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Red Bass

Great Barrier Reef, Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

One of the most abundant of shallow-reef snappers in the Indo-Pacific, Lutjanus bohar (also often called a bohar snapper), is remarkably aggressive, often charging after large poppers or stickbaits in packs, competing for the prize.

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Fish Pictures from Australia

Narrowbarred Spanish Mackerel

Great Barrier Reef, Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

These mackerel are always eager to chase down either topwater lures cranked fast or fast trolled lures. Often they will “sky” on poppers, launching themselves 10 or 20 feet into the air in their determination to catch their prey.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Talang Queenfish

Exmouth, Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

A long, thin member of the family of jacks and trevallies, the queenie haunts estuaries and nearshore coasts throughout the Indo-Pacific. Maxing out at nearly 40 pounds, it’s one of the world’s great light-tackle gamesters, making sizzling runs and leaping wildly.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Brownmarbled Grouper

Great Barrier Reef, Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

Often called flowery cod Down Under, these grouper are distributed widely in tropical Pacific waters. Typically, they’re anything but shy, striking lures and baits hard and immediately heading for structure.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Giant Trevally

Great Barrier Reef, Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

GT may range from silver with dark spotting to nearly black.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Coral Rockcod

Abrolhos Islands, Western Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

One of a seemingly infinite number of colorful groupers, this one (Cephalopholis miniata) grabbed a metal jig.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Double-Lined Mackerel

Cape York, Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

Seldom exceeding 6 pounds or so, this little mackerel is common throughout the Indo-Pacific. It shares the double lateral line with shark mackerel.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Yellowspotted Trevally

Exmouth, Western Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

Abundant in many Indo-Pacific areas, this species — also known as the goldspotted trevally — prefers inshore/nearshore waters. It can reach 30 pounds.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Coronation Trout

Great Barrier Reef, Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

Gaudy but gorgeous, Variola louti —a species of grouper — is properly known as the yellow-edged lyretail. Common throughout the Indo-Pacific, coronation trout may reach 15 pounds.

Fish Pictures from Australia

Squid

Shark Bay, Western Australia Doug Olander / Sport Fishing

Okay, it’s not a fish. But it was so cool, it merited inclusion here. Caught at night under boat lights at anchor. Eaten next day. Yum.

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