Perth fish species guide

Tailor

Shore / Surf

Tailor are Perth's most popular surf-fishing target — aggressive schooling predators that hunt baitfish in packs...

Pomatomus saltatrix · Oct–Jun

Australian Herring

Shore / Jetty

Bread-and-butter species found year-round on almost every structure and beach in Perth. Reliable on small bait rigs,...

Arripis georgianus · Year-round

Australian Salmon

Shore / Surf

Australian salmon fishing in WA — a hard-fighting pelagic, not a true salmon and nothing like the pink farmed fish of...

Arripis truttaceus · Mar–Jun

Skipjack Trevally (Skippy)

Jetty / Harbour

Fast-moving schooling fish found around jetty pylons and rocky structure. Takes small lures and bait readily. Often...

Pseudocaranx georgianus · Year-round

Mulloway (Jewfish)

Shore / Surf

Perth's premier land-based trophy fish. Patrols rock walls, channels, and river mouths after dark. Best targeted with...

Argyrosomus japonicus · Year-round (night)

King George Whiting

Shore / Estuary

King George whiting are Perth's most prized shore-caught table fish, feeding over sand near seagrass in sheltered...

Sillaginodes punctatus · Year-round

Yellowfin Whiting (Sand Whiting)

Shore / Estuary

Yellowfin whiting — also called sand whiting in WA — are an excellent-eating fish of sandy shallows and estuary...

Sillago schomburgkii · Year-round

Southern Calamari (Squid)

Jetty / Harbour

Hugely popular target around jetty pylons and weed beds year-round, with peaks in autumn and spring. Target at night...

Sepioteuthis australis · Year-round

WA Dhufish

Reef / Offshore

Dhufish — WA dhufish, or dhuie — are Western Australia's premier table fish, endemic to WA and found nowhere else on...

Glaucosoma hebraicum · Year-round

Pink Snapper

Reef / Offshore

Pink snapper is one of WA's premier demersal reef fish — sweet eating, hard fighting, and found over reef and...

Chrysophrys auratus · May–Sep

Black Bream

Estuary / River

The Swan River's signature species. Found around bridge pylons, jetties, and rocky edges year-round. Best on light...

Acanthopagrus butcheri · Year-round

Flathead

Estuary / River

Flathead are ambush predators that lie half-buried on sandy and muddy bottoms throughout Perth's Swan River, Mangles...

Platycephalus spp. · Year-round

Yellowtail Kingfish

Shore / Reef

Powerful pelagic that pushes through Cockburn Sound and along the coast in summer. Occasionally taken from rock walls...

Seriola lalandi · Dec–Apr

Samson Fish

Reef / Offshore

Close relative of the kingfish, endemic to southern Australia. Occasionally taken from deep-water structure on heavy...

Seriola hippos · Year-round

Snook

Shore / Jetty

Snook (sea pike) are a fast, sharp-toothed predator caught year-round around Perth jetties, groynes and rock walls. A...

Sphyraena novaehollandiae · Year-round

Western School Whiting

Shore / Estuary

School whiting — western school whiting (Sillago vittata) — are the small, abundant whiting you'll catch on Perth's...

Sillago vittata · Year-round

Tarwhine

Shore / Jetty

Tarwhine vs bream: a silver, gold-striped bream relative often confused with black bream, found around Perth estuary...

Rhabdosargus sarba · Year-round

Cobbler

Estuary / River

Estuary catfish with venomous dorsal and pectoral spines — handle with care. Decent eating despite its looks. Common...

Cnidoglanis macrocephalus · Year-round

Garfish

Jetty / Shore

Garfish — southern garfish in WA — are slender, surface-feeding fish that school in estuaries and sheltered bays...

Hyporhamphus melanochir · Year-round

Spanish Mackerel

Pelagic / Reef edge

Spanish mackerel are the headline pelagic of WA's Gascoyne and North Coast — fast, razor-toothed fish trolled along...

Scomberomorus commerson · Sep–Apr (Gascoyne/Pilbara peak)

Coral Trout

Reef

Coral trout are the iconic red reef predator of northern WA — caught from Coral Bay and Exmouth (the southern edge of...

Plectropomus leopardus · Year-round (Pilbara/Kimberley); Apr–Nov (Ningaloo)

Red Emperor

Offshore / Reef

Deep-water tropical snapper and one of the most prized demersal fish in northern WA. Found from the Abrolhos...

Lutjanus sebae · Year-round (Gascoyne, Pilbara, Kimberley)

Spangled Emperor

Reef / Lagoon

The mainstay reef demersal of WA's Gascoyne and North Coast bioregions, locally called nor'west snapper. Found from...

Lethrinus nebulosus · Year-round (Gascoyne, Pilbara, Kimberley)

Queenfish

Inshore / Estuary

Fast inshore predator of the tropical north, hunting bait schools across flats, channels and creek mouths from...

Scomberoides commersonnianus · Year-round (Pilbara/Kimberley)

Giant Trevally

Reef / Inshore

The GT — apex inshore predator of the tropical reef, and the headline target for popper and stickbait anglers from...

Caranx ignobilis · Year-round (Gascoyne/North Coast)

Mangrove Jack

Estuary / Creek

Hard-fighting tropical snapper of WA's Pilbara and Kimberley estuaries — Onslow, Dampier, Port Hedland, Broome and...

Lutjanus argentimaculatus · Sep–May (Pilbara/Kimberley)

Sailfish

Pelagic / Offshore

Indo-Pacific sailfish are the headline gamefish of Exmouth and WA's tropical north, not Perth — the continental shelf...

Istiophorus platypterus · Sep–Jan (Exmouth peak)

Barramundi

Estuary / Freshwater

Barramundi are the headline tropical sportfish of WA's Kimberley — wild fish in the Ord, Cambridge Gulf and King...

Lates calcarifer · Sep–May (Kimberley wet build-up peak)

King Threadfin Salmon

Surf / Estuary

King threadfin salmon are a large inshore predator of WA's North Coast — Eighty Mile Beach, Cambridge Gulf and the...

Polydactylus macrochir · Apr–Nov (dry season peak)

Baldchin Groper

Reef / Offshore

WA west-coast endemic, found from Kalbarri south to Geographe Bay with the bulk of the recreational catch coming from...

Choerodon rubescens · Apr–Nov (open season — see closures)

Redfin Perch

Freshwater

Introduced freshwater pest, declared in WA — must not be returned alive to water. Established in the south-west's...

Perca fluviatilis · Year-round (cooler-month peak)

Rainbow Trout

Freshwater

Rainbow trout fishing in WA's south-west — the introduced salmonid stocked into Wellington Dam, Drakesbrook Weir,...

Oncorhynchus mykiss · Apr–Oct (cooler months)

Brown Trout

Freshwater

Introduced freshwater salmonid, the older of WA's two trout species and less actively stocked these days than...

Salmo trutta · Apr–Oct (cooler months)

Marron

Freshwater

WA's iconic south-west endemic freshwater crayfish, found in dams, rivers, and weirs from Harvey through to the...

Cherax cainii · Jan 8 – Feb 5 (open season)

Cobia

Pelagic / Offshore

Cobia are a curious, structure-loving pelagic of WA's north — found from Kalbarri up through the Gascoyne, Pilbara...

Rachycentron canadum · Year-round (north of Kalbarri)

Longtail Tuna

Pelagic / Inshore

Northern WA's signature inshore tuna — fast, hard-running, and accessible from beach, boat, and kayak. Schools chase...

Thunnus tonggol · Year-round (peak Apr–Oct)

Silver Cobbler

Freshwater

Silver cobbler are the freshwater catfish of Lake Argyle and the Ord River in WA's East Kimberley — the...

Neoarius midgleyi · Year-round

Blue Swimmer Crab

Estuary / Sheltered Bay

Blue swimmer crab fishing in WA — the state's most popular recreational crustacean, found across sheltered estuaries...

Portunus armatus · Dec–Aug (closed Sep–Nov in the Swan/Canning, Cockburn Sound and waters south to Minninup Beach)

Rankin Cod

Offshore / Reef

WA-endemic tropical grouper of the Pilbara and Gascoyne, found across rubble bottom and broken reef from around Shark...

Epinephelus multinotatus · Year-round (Gascoyne, Pilbara)

Western Rock Lobster

Offshore / Reef

WA's iconic west-coast endemic crustacean and one of the most valuable single-species fisheries in Australia....

Panulirus cygnus · Oct 15 – Jun 30 (south of North West Cape); year-round north

Great Barracuda

Pelagic / Reef edge

Large, toothy pelagic ambush predator of WA's tropical north — silver-flanked, fast, and aggressive enough to hit...

Sphyraena barracuda · Year-round (north); summer in the lower west

Dart

Shore / Surf

Fast, hard-pulling surf-zone fighter of WA's warmer beaches, built like a small trevally and a brilliant light-tackle...

Trachinotus botla · Year-round (north); warmer months in the lower west

Wahoo

Pelagic / Offshore

The fastest fish in WA's bluewater — a sleek, striped, razor-toothed pelagic capable of explosive speed and...

Acanthocybium solandri · Dec–Apr (Perth FADs); year-round in the tropical north

Bluebone (Blackspot Tuskfish)

Offshore / Reef

Big, bull-headed reef wrasse named for the aqua-blue tint of its bones and fin spines — a hard-pulling demersal...

Choerodon schoenleinii · Year-round (Gascoyne and North Coast)

Black Marlin

Pelagic / Offshore

The heavyweight billfish of WA's tropical north and the headline gamefish target out of Exmouth and Broome. Black...

Istiompax indica · Oct–Apr (Exmouth/Broome summer–autumn)

Harlequin Fish

Reef / Offshore

Harlequin fish are a vividly patterned reef serranid endemic to southern Australia and rated among the finest eating...

Othos dentex · Year-round (West Coast and South Coast)

Nannygai (Saddletail Snapper)

Offshore / Reef

A deep-bodied tropical snapper of northern WA, also called saddletail snapper or large-mouth nannygai for the dark...

Lutjanus malabaricus · Year-round (Gascoyne, Pilbara, Kimberley)

Chinamanfish

Offshore / Reef

A large tropical reef snapper of northern WA, recognised by the trailing filaments on its dorsal fin in juveniles and...

Symphorus nematophorus · Year-round (Pilbara, Kimberley)

Blowfish (Blowie)

Shore / Estuary

The blowie — WA's most despised bait-robber. A small pufferfish that swarms estuaries, jetties and beaches across the...

Family Tetraodontidae (various, e.g. Torquigener pleurogramma) · Year-round (spring–autumn worst)

Blue Salmon (Blue Threadfin)

Surf / Estuary

Blue salmon — the WA name for blue threadfin, also called Cooktown salmon or simply 'threadie'. Not a true salmon; a...

Eleutheronema tetradactylum · Apr–Nov (dry season peak)

Breaksea Cod

Reef / Offshore

A handsome small reef cod of WA's lower west and South Coast — orange-brown with darker mottling and a dark blotch on...

Epinephelides armatus · Year-round (South West / South Coast)

Bronze Whaler

Surf / Offshore

The bronze whaler — 'bronzie' — a powerful coastal shark caught right around the WA coast from the beach, rocks and...

Carcharhinus brachyurus · Year-round (warmer months best in the south)

Giant Herring

Inshore / Estuary

A slender, silver, hard-jumping sportfish of WA's tropical north — the local 'ladyfish'. Patrols estuaries, creek...

Elops machnata · Year-round (Pilbara/Kimberley)

Mahi Mahi (Dolphinfish)

Pelagic / Bluewater

Mahi mahi — dolphinfish or dorado — the spectacular blue-and-gold bluewater pelagic of WA's offshore waters. A...

Coryphaena hippurus · Nov–May (warm-water months); year-round in the tropical north

Painted Crayfish (Tropical Rock Lobster)

Reef / Tropical

The painted (ornate-group) tropical rock lobster of WA's north — a spectacularly coloured spiny lobster, blue-green...

Panulirus versicolor · Year-round (north of North West Cape)

Queen Snapper (Blue Morwong)

Reef / Offshore

WA's 'queen snapper' is the blue morwong — a handsome southern reef fish with bright blue-and-yellow facial markings,...

Nemadactylus valenciennesi · Year-round (South West / South Coast)

Razorfish (Razorshell)

Shore / Sand flats

In WA, 'razorfish' is not a fish at all — it's the razor shell or pen shell, a large fan-shaped bivalve (Pinna...

Pinna bicolor (Family Pinnidae) · Year-round

Ruby Snapper

Offshore / Deep reef

A deep-water tropical snapper of northern WA — vivid red above, pinkish-white below, with the white-tipped lower tail...

Etelis carbunculus · Year-round (Gascoyne / North Coast)

Sergeant Baker

Reef / Offshore

A bottom-dwelling reef fish of southern Australia, common as a bycatch on the lower west and South Coast. Mottled...

Latropiscis purpurissatus · Year-round (South West / South Coast)

Shark Mackerel

Pelagic / Reef edge

A fast, schooling mackerel of WA's tropical north — big-eyed, dark-backed, and named for the faint shark-like smell...

Grammatorcynus bicarinatus · Year-round (Pilbara/Kimberley); summer in the lower west

Spotted Mackerel

Pelagic / Reef edge

A fast, spotted, schooling mackerel of WA's tropical north — smaller and quicker than the Spanish, with rows of...

Scomberomorus munroi · Year-round (Pilbara/Kimberley); summer in the north-west

Threadfin (Blue and King Threadfin)

Surf / Estuary

The threadfins of WA's tropical north — blue threadfin and the larger king threadfin — named for the trailing...

Eleutheronema tetradactylum (blue); Polydactylus macrochir (king) · Apr–Nov (dry season peak)

Yellowfin Tuna

Offshore / Bluewater

Yellowfin tuna are WA's premier light-tackle gamefish — chased off Exmouth, Ningaloo and the continental shelf, and...

Thunnus albacares · Year-round in the north; autumn–winter peak off the lower west coast

Southern Bluefin Tuna

Offshore / Bluewater

Southern bluefin tuna (SBT) are the south coast's blue-water prize — running off Albany, Esperance and Bremer Bay...

Thunnus maccoyii · Autumn–winter (Mar–Jul) off the south coast