Understanding The Fish Species Of The Seychelles
As many of you already know Seychelles is a mecca for any serious fly angler and has become one of our top-selling destinations. All of the operations we represent in Seychelles provides saltwater fly fishing at the next level in the Indian ocean. What makes the destination so popular is a big list, one thing for certain that attracts the sheer number of anglers each year is the Seychelles fish species that you can target and catch on the fly in the granitic islands is quite outstanding. Below we have detailed a shortlist of our customer’s favourite species to target at Cosmoledo Atoll, Astove Atoll, Alphonse Island, Farquhar Lodge and Providence Atoll.
Fish Species of the Seychelles
Bonefish – Albula Vulpes
Seychelles has a healthy population of Bonefish that frequent the flats and are in the 6 – 10 lbs range. Bonefish are consistent on a neap and spring tide and are a fantastic species to target in a group or by singling out tailing fish. This is definitely one of the Seychelles fish species almost all anglers have heard of.
Yellowmargin Triggerfish – Pseudobalistes Flavimarginatus
Triggerfish are opportunists, feeding mainly on small crustaceans in coral reefs, which makes them perfect targets on a fly. The Seychelles offers great opportunities when it comes to targeting Yellowmargin Triggerfish. These colourful characters grow in excess of 15lbs. They have extended anal and dorsal fins that work in conjunction with each other but in different directions, giving them incredible acceleration.
Moustache Triggerfish – Balistoides Viridescens
This is a colourful and energetic feeder that tails when feeding in the shallows, both on the flats and on the reef edges. This species is also known as a Giant or Titan Triggerfish, it is the largest of the three species that can be caught in the Seychelles due to their being a wide variety of species. Our guides were the first to develop the flies and techniques to deceive these fish.
Milkfish – Chanos Chanos
The Milkfish is a finicky shallow water algae feeder and a ferocious aerobatic fighter reaching lengths in excess of 180cm and weights over 50lbs. Our guides were the first to develop the flies and techniques to catch this sought-after trophy fish. The first Milkfish ever caught on fly was at Alphonse Island in the Seychelles which is the best destination in the world for this species, with more caught on our atolls than all the world’s destinations put
together. The Milkfish at Astove are somewhat smaller than that of Alphonse but appear in larger numbers.
Indo-Pacific Permit – Trachinotus Blochii
This species is also known as Pompano. This is because it is a member of the Carangid family and a relative of the Atlantic Permit. All over the Seychelles there is a healthy population of Permit, which are spread throughout the entire fishery. With the numbers of Permit caught ever increasing from season to season, if you are after achieving a “Grand Slam”, this should certainly be your destination of choice. Our guides have near-perfected the art of catching these fish and it is considered the Holy Grail of saltwater fly fishing!
Giant Trevally – Caranx Ignobilis
The Giant Trevally, also known as GT’s, are a super predator that is found at all our destinations in good numbers with specimens as large as 120lbs. Astove has less GT’s than that of Cosmoledo, yet GT numbers are consistent and average catch stats of approximately 20 per week. The GT’s at Astove are generally larger than those of Cosmoledo.
Bluefin Trevally – Caranx Melampygus
Bluefin Trevally are distributed throughout the tropical waters of the world with populations varying according to fishing pressure. Areas in the Seychelles that have shallow lagoons, support healthy populations of juveniles, which contribute immensely to the overall population. The typical size of fish would be from 18cm to 80cm, with an 80cm specimen being a trophy.
Barracuda – Sphyraena Barracuda
These fearsome-looking creatures are extremely fast and jump when hooked. Larger Barracuda, which grow to over 240cm, are more or less solitary in their habits and hunt alone when on the flats. Although all of our destinations have great numbers of Barracuda, the largest specimens are caught at Alphonse due to the incredible population of Bonefish that they feed on.
Indo-Pacific Sailfish – Istiophorus Platypterus
The Sailfish is the fastest fish in the sea and named after its large dorsal fin, which extends most of the length of its body. These acrobatic fighters are found in the deeper blue water that surrounds the Seychelles atolls as well as the outer islands and in good numbers.
Yellowfin Tuna – Thunnus albacares
Yellowfin Tuna tend to follow the bait as they migrate through the Seychelles waters and like the Dogtooth Tuna are found often along the drop-offs. Sometimes it’s possible to cast at these fish when they are busting a bait bail on the surface which is very exciting sport.
Contact us
For more information on any Seychelles fish species or our Seychelles destinations make sure to take a look at our tour pages on our website for more information or our dedicated Seychelles Youtube playlist. If you have any questions regarding any of our Saltwater fly fishing tours, get in touch with us at 01603 407596 and one of our dedicated professionals will help you with your query.
Tight Lines,
Peter
