Blue Salmon & Giant Herring: Northern WA Sportfish

Two fish turn up again and again on the northern beaches and creek mouths — blue salmon and giant herring — sharing almost everything except the one thing that matters. Same water, same lures, same run-in tide. One is among the best eating fish in the tropics; the other is a bony, hard-jumping sportfish you’ll almost certainly let go. Knowing which is which is the whole game.

This guide covers what they are, where and when they show across WA’s north, how to catch both on light tackle, the rules, and the honest answer on the frying pan.

Two Fish, One Tide

Blue salmon is the everyday WA name for blue threadfin (Eleutheronema tetradactylum) — also called Cooktown salmon, or just “threadie”. A slim, silver threadfin of the tropical north, not a salmon and not related to one. It works beach gutters, sand flats and creek mouths from the Pilbara to the Kimberley, hunting prawn, mullet and small baitfish on the rising tide, usually in better numbers than its bigger cousin the king threadfin. Most run 40–70cm and top out around 90cm, with fish to around 3kg common — the metre-plus threadfin are kings, not blues. A willing biter, a clean fighter that skips across the surface — and, the part that matters, excellent on the plate. For the full threadfin family rundown, including the prized king threadfin, see the threadfin guide.

Giant herring (Elops machnata) is the local “ladyfish”, the poor man’s tarpon. Long, slim and bright silver, it schools around estuary mouths, harbour edges and sandy beaches from Shark Bay north. Most are 1–4kg, with fish to a metre and around 10kg. Hook one and it’s airborne instantly — greyhounding and tail-walking across the surface, throwing hooks the whole way. That’s the fun, because it certainly isn’t the eating.

Not That Salmon

The name needs clearing up, because the search results muddle it constantly. Blue salmon is not the Australian salmon of the south coast. Australian salmon (Arripis) is a cool-water schooling fish that runs the surf beaches around Perth and the South West, mostly in autumn. Blue salmon is a tropical threadfin of the far north. They share a word and nothing else — different family, different climate, opposite ends of the state. Warm water at a Pilbara creek mouth, it’s blue salmon; a cold South West beach in March, it’s the other one. Settlers named a lot of WA fish after things they half-remembered from home, and this is one of them.

Where and When in the North

Both are tropical and both fish best on the run-in and run-out tides around structure — creek mouths, harbour walls, sandbanks and beach gutters where the current concentrates bait. Blue salmon peak through the dry season, roughly April to November, when the beaches and creeks are most fishable; giant herring are year-round, with the cooler dry-season months (April–October) the most comfortable to fish. For both, the last hour of the run-in, the change, and the first of the run-out are prime, especially around the new and full moons. Dawn, dusk and the first hour of dark outproduce the middle of the day every time.

Where to Fish for Them

North-to-mid-coast, all moving-tide creek-and-beach country.

Broome (Roebuck Bay and Town Beach)

The beaches, Gantheaume Point and the Roebuck Bay flats hold both fish, with the big Broome tides moving enormous volumes of water and stirring the bait that brings them on. Fish the run-in over the flats and the creek edges at change of light, and mind the crocs in the creeks north of town. Check the Broome forecast before you commit to a tide.

Onslow (Beadon Creek)

Beadon Creek is one of the most reliable spots in the Pilbara for this pair — a working creek mouth with current, structure and bait, where blue salmon and giant herring turn up in the same session as the threadfin and the odd barra. Town Beach gutters fish the run-in too. See the Onslow forecast.

Dampier and Karratha

The Hampton Harbour edges, Hearson’s Cove and the back creeks around Dampier and Karratha are classic light-tackle water — harbour walls and creek entrances that concentrate bait on the moving tide. Cast small lures to working schools and you’ll find both fish mixed in.

Exmouth

The marina flats and gulf-side creeks around Exmouth sit at the southern, comfortable end of the range for both. Sight-cast small metals and plastics to bait schools on the flats — the giant herring will let you know they’re there the second you hook one.

Gear and Rigs

Light-tackle fishing, and the gear is the same for both with one change in lure choice. The outfit: a 7ft light-to-medium spin rod, 10–20lb braid, and a 15–25lb fluorocarbon leader. No wire — neither fish has cutting teeth, so wire is for the mackerel and barracuda you might hook up north, not these.

• Lures (both): small soft plastics on 1/4–3/8oz jigheads, and soft vibes — these cover both equally.
• Lures (blue salmon): slow-rolled paddle-tails and small suspending hardbodies, worked slowly with the current on the run-in.
• Lures (giant herring): small chrome slugs and metals, and small surface poppers or stickbaits, worked fast — a quick retrieve triggers the chase.
• Baits (blue salmon): live prawn, mullet or herring, or fresh mullet strip on a running-sinker rig with a 3/0–4/0 circle hook and 20–30lb leader, just enough lead to hold in the wash.
• Hooks: sharp single hooks on lures, barbs crushed for the giant herring you’ll be releasing.

The one technique difference is in the mouth. Blue salmon have a soft mouth that tears under heavy load, so feed line on the take and lift gently rather than striking hard. Giant herring have hard, bony mouths and shed hooks the instant the line goes slack — keep the rod tip working through every jump to stay connected.

Eating: One Keeper, One Release

Here’s where they split. Blue salmon is excellent — moist, white, mild flesh that’s among the better eating fish of the tropical north, and the smaller fish are arguably better than big king threadfin. Bleed and ice it on capture in the heat; it pan-fries and grills beautifully.

Giant herring is poor — bony and dry, riddled with fine intramuscular bones, and not worth keeping. Crush your barbs, keep it in the water, and put it back; it’s a delicate fish that releases best with minimal handling. Same tide, same lure: one goes in the esky, one goes back over the side.

The Rules

Blue salmon is a blue threadfin, which sits under “threadfin, other species” in WA rules — no minimum size, a daily bag of 4 — within the statewide nearshore/estuarine finfish mixed daily bag of 16. King threadfin is managed separately, at a 450mm minimum and a bag of 2, so know which one you’re holding. Giant herring isn’t individually listed in the main tables and falls within the “all other species” mixed daily bag, with no minimum size — though almost everyone releases them anyway.

Regulations shift, and a screenshot from two seasons ago isn’t current. Confirm the numbers at DPIRD’s recreational bag and size limits before you head out.

Frequently Asked

Is blue salmon the same as Australian salmon?
No — they’re unrelated. Blue salmon is the WA name for blue threadfin (Eleutheronema tetradactylum), a tropical threadfin of the northern beaches and creeks. Australian salmon (Arripis) is a cool-water schooling fish of the south coast. Same word, completely different fish, opposite ends of the state.

Are giant herring good to eat?
No. Giant herring are bony and dry, full of fine intramuscular bones, and almost universally released. Their value is purely as a light-tackle sportfish — they jump spectacularly. Blue salmon, caught in the same water, is the one you keep for the table.

Where can you catch blue salmon and giant herring in WA?
The tropical north — beaches, sand flats and creek mouths from the Gascoyne through the Pilbara and into the Kimberley. Onslow’s Beadon Creek, the Dampier and Karratha harbours and back creeks, the Exmouth flats, and the Broome beaches and Roebuck Bay all produce both fish on the moving tide.

What lures work for blue salmon and giant herring?
Small soft plastics on 1/4–3/8oz jigheads and soft vibes cover both. Blue salmon also take slow-rolled paddle-tails and small hardbodies on the run-in; giant herring respond to small chrome slugs and surface poppers worked fast. Crush the barbs — most giant herring go back.

Do you need wire trace for giant herring?
No. Giant herring have hard, bony mouths but no cutting teeth, so a 15–25lb fluorocarbon leader is plenty. Sharp single hooks and a firm hookset matter more than wire. Wire is for the mackerel and barracuda you might also hook up north, not these.

Two fish, one tide, opposite fates at the cleaning table. Read the blue salmon species guide and the giant herring species guide for the full rundown on each, check your spot’s tide and wind on BiteCompass, and keep the wire trace in the box — this one’s all light line and moving water.