Fishing for Florida’s Butterfly Peacock Bass   Fishing Tips Locations History Sizes Sportfishing Tips    The butterfly peacock (also called peacock bass) is an extremely popular freshwater game fish introduced to south Florida in 1984. It is readily caught by bank and boat anglers using a wide variety of tackle and bait that ranges from live shiners to artificial lures and flies. Butterfly peacock prefer live fish and fish-imitating baits often used by largemouth bass anglers, but they rarely hit plastic worms commonly used to catch largemouth bass.    Fishing is typically good throughout the year; however, most butterfly peacock heavier than four pounds are caught between February and May.  Shaded areas provided by bridges, culverts and other structures generally are productive fishing spots, along with fallen trees, canal ends, bends and intersections. Nearly all butterfly peacock are caught during daylight hours.    The easiest way to catch butterfly peacock is by using live bait. A favorite choice is a small golden shiner about three inches in length, referred to locally as a “peacock shiner.” These can be fished below a float or free-lined while either casting or slow-trolling with an electric motor along canal edges. A small split shot weight may be required to fish the shiner at the proper depth.    Topwater lures (with and without propellers), minnow-imitating crankbaits and a variety of jigs fished on casting or spinning tackle are good  choices for artificial baits. These include floating and sinking Rapalas and Yozuri minnows, Rat-L-Traps, Shad-Raps, Jerk’n Sams, Wobble Pops, Tiny Torpedos and Pop-Rs. A plastic, twin-tailed minnow and jig combination buzzed across the surface or tossed at fish sighted in deeper water also can be productive. Small tube lures and jigs frequently are used to sight-fish butterfly peacock, especially when they are aggressively guarding spawning beds near the shoreline. Although bigger baits (up to five inches) may entice more trophy-sized fish, baits less than three inches in length will produce more consistently than larger ones. However, even big butterfly peacock will take baits smaller than largemouth bass anglers typically use.    Dahlberg divers, deceivers, Clousers, epoxy minnows, zonkers and poppers are all popular selections of flyfishers. Many anglers prefer gold, fire-tiger or natural-colored lures; fly fishermen like chartreuse or yellow flies with flashy strips of mylar-type materials.    Most butterfly peacock anglers use light spinning tackle with six to eight-pound test line. Light lines and tippets generate more strikes than heavier ones, and heavier lines aren’t necessary because canal-caught butterfly peacock tend to be open-water fighters.    The butterfly peacock can be handled by its lower jaw, using the same thumb-and-finger grip used for largemouth bass, although this will not immobilize them. By the end of the day, successful anglers using this grip will have many minor thumb scrapes caused by sandpaper-like teeth. These can be avoided by using tape, a leather thumb-guard or a fish landing device like the Bogagrip.    The current bag limit for butterfly peacock is two fish per day, only one of which may be greater than 17 inches long. This 17-inch length regulation gives added protection to large fish, which is essential for maintaining a high quality sport fishery. If the popularity of butterfly peacock fishing continues to grow as expected, it may be necessary to consider even more restrictive regulations to protect this fishery (e.g., the bag limit may be reduced to one fish). All regulations for sport fish are subject to change, so always check to be sure of current rules.    The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) encourages anglers to practice catch-and-release when fishing for butterfly peacock. Overall, this species is a hearty fish and nearly 100 percent will survive being caught and released when properly handled. However, butterfly peacock do not survive as well in live wells or as long out of water as do largemouth bass. It is important that they be released quickly to maximize their chances for survival.   Locations to Fish    Low water temperature is the most important factor for butterfly peacock in Florida. Laboratory temperature studies have documented that butterfly peacock die in water colder than 60 degrees. In fact, the first attempt to study butterfly peacock in the 1960s failed when all fish died due to low pond temperatures.    In the early 1980s, it was discovered that canals of coastal southeast Florida were warmer than other waters during the winter, and some rarely dropped below 65 degrees. The main reason for this is the Biscayne Aquifer that lies just a few feet below the ground. During winter, the warmer water flowing from this aquifer into canals creates the warm temperatures critical to the survival and success of many exotic fishes. The butterfly peacock is no exception. In fact, of all exotic fishes currently established in Florida, the butterfly peacock is the least tolerant of low water temperatures.    Butterfly peacock have over-wintered and reproduced successfully every year since their introduction in 1984. No additional fish have been stocked since 1987. Although butterfly peacock occasionally experience partial winterkills, coastal southeast Florida canals provide conditions that should permanently support a high quality sport fishery for this important species.    Unlike some of their relatives, butterfly peacock do not venture into salt water and are restricted to salinities similar to those tolerated by largemouth bass. This intolerance to salt water and low water temperatures prevents butterfly peacock  from becoming widespread outside the metropolitan southeast Florida area.    The best and most up-to-date fishing reports for butterfly peacock are available from local bait and tackle shop operators. However, quarterly fishing forecasts are also available on our website.  A few tackle shops cater specifically to butterfly peacock anglers. There also are several professional guides who specialize in fishing for this species. Experienced guides are especially helpful for visiting anglers and those who want to quickly learn the basics, plus a few of the best canals to fish. For first-time, non-guided butterfly peacock anglers, it is strongly recommended to check with local freshwater tackle shops for the best locations and baits to use.   These maps also are available in Acrobat PDF format on our fisheries publications site. HISTORY:  Why Are They Here?    About 20,000 butterfly peacock fingerlings were stocked into major canal systems of southeast Florida between 1984 and 1987 by the FWC. These fish were introduced to increase predation on illegally introduced and abundant exotic forage fishes, especially the African spotted tilapia, as well as to enhance freshwater sportfishing opportunities in the metropolitan Miami-Ft. Lauderdale area. This project has been extremely successful, and butterfly peacock currently represent a multi-million dollar sport fishery in Florida.    The butterfly peacock was introduced by FWC staff only after many years of research. Fisheries scientists are opposed to introductions of exotic fishes that have not been thoroughly studied. A species that has been beneficial in one location may be harmful elsewhere. All introductions need to be scientifically evaluated before any species is released into a new area. For this and other reasons, it is illegal for anglers to release live butterfly peacock anywhere other than back into the waters from which they were caught.    Because of careful planning and preliminary evaluations, Florida’s butterfly peacock fishery has been cited as a model program by several state, national and international environmental groups. In light of this success, it is important to re-emphasize the caution with which this introduction was approached. The butterfly peacock is a justified exception to the FWC’s general rule of prohibiting introductions of exotic fishes. Approximate Measures of Florida Butterfly Peacock INCHES POUNDS 10 0.5 11 0.7 12 1.0 13 1.3 14 1.6 15 2.0 16 2.4 17 3.1 18-19 3.6-4.2 >20 >5.0   POUNDS INCHES 1 12 2 15 3 17 4 19 >5 >20