At nearly 19lb this huge zander is an impressive predator that came as a huge shock to its captor, Croatian angler Igor Pavičić – and not just because of its size.
Fishing the river Drava, a tributary of the mighty Danube, in Croatia, Igor was lure fishing for the waterway’s predatory species. However, when the big zed struck it was the last species he expected to see on the end of his line due to the stretch he was targeting not actually being thought to contain any zander.
The fish, which weighed a hefty 18lb 15oz, struck at a Savage Gear 12.5cm cannibal shad soft lure I white pearl fished with an 18gr jig head.
Lure fishing for zander on the continent is a hugely popular method of targeting the species. And with the number of anglers now targeting zeds in UK waters growing fast, we’re also beginning to use the method – once thought to be pointless for targeting zander – to great affect.
Wanting to find out more, Total Coarse Fishing asked a couple of predator experts to reveal their top tips for inducing strikes from the species using artificials.
Mick Brown
As arguably the country’s best-known predator angler, Mick needs no introduction. Now spending plenty of time targeting zander as well as pike, the Shimano-backed ace often turns to lures to keep the fish coming.
Location
You must locate them first as they are usually packed tightly and there will often be large expanses of water with no zander present. Lures are a great way of searching for these areas.
Timing
Feeding times can be critical and they are often very short sharp affairs. Dusk is favourite time but when the water is coloured you have a chance of tempting them throughout the day. Strikes will be bold at feeding times but they will sometimes nip onto a lure at other times out of instinct so be prepared to feel for these tiny bites.
Depth
Depth is critical when lure fishing for zander. Whether casting or trolling, your lure must hug the bottom contours. That’s why jigs work so well.
Shapes and sizes
Zander can be very fussy about the size and profile of lures so it's wise to try several different types. Try minnow shapes and deep bodies to find out what works on the day. I particularly like the Storm Deep Thundersticks (minnows) and Rapala Shad Rap (deep bodied)
Colour
Colour choice can be vital and it’s sensible to have a range of variations. It's never wise to guess what colour will work so have natural and attractor colours with you. Blue and Chrome is one of my current favourite crankbaits and green mackerel has always bee a great jig colour.
Danny Parkins
Danny has a vast amount of experience targeting predators of all kinds using lures. With a soft spot for zander though, he’s got a number of tips up his sleeve to get the species hitting hard.
Features
Some of the best zander venues like drains and canals can be pretty featureless and the key here is to find areas that will hold fish. Look for tree lines along and behind the venue, locks and bridges or man-made structures, which will nearly always hold predators including zander. A change in water depth will also see zander hanging around ledges and drop-offs, using them as good ambush points. When looking at running water, weirs and changes of flow are always first on my list of places to try.
Prey
"Matching the hatch" as with all lure fishing finding where and what the fish are feeding on can literally turn your day around. I’ve found while fishing the river Severn and Warwickshire Avon that locating the prey fish such as small roach and bleak often resulted in finding zeds, especially in deeper water. Finding prey fish on the surface often casting a small shad (2-3inches) at the shoal and just letting it fish on the drop can produce good zeds as they will often be hitting prey from under the shoal.
Presentation
Scaling your gear down from your piking kit is key. Zeds have fairly small mouths compared to pike of the same weight. Using 5 or 6inch shads and plugs will catch zander, but if you scale your gear down to 3-4inch shads and soft plastics combined with 12-15lb wire traces - like some of the AFW wire styles which can be tied direct to braid and lure – and your presentation will vastly improve along with the number of hits you get. Also try switching to 6 and 8-strand super PE braids such as Megabass Dragoncall 8s in 16-20lb breaking strains - your presentation of the lure will completely blow the fish away.
Stingers
While using soft plastics such as shads like Delalande GT shads and Buster shads on small jig heads I always make up a selection of varied length stinger treble which can be clipped on and off the snap link of your trace and just nipped into the shad or any soft plastic for added hooking points. I’ve nailed hundreds and hundreds of fish on the stinger treble when the fish hasn’t picked up the original single hook of the jig. Zander can sometimes be very gentle at hitting the lure the stinger allows hook up when the fish grabs the back of the lure.
Boats
A lot of Zander fishing with lures is done via boat and this has thrown up some of the biggest lure caught specimens. To fish a boat though a good fish finder and sounder is essential in order to find the where the fish are and at what depth they’re shoaling. In these situations I find vertical jigging with jigs and other soft plsatics fished under the rod tip working the correct depth can be a killer method.
