Pacus

                                                           

 

                                                                 PACUS

            

                piaructus mesopotamicus, piaructus brachysomus, myleus pacu, of the characidae family

 

                       white pacus of the Xingu river ( Brazil)

Several species with similar morphological characteristics and very near behaviours are regrouped under the generic name of pacu. These gregarious fishes present a piranha looking appearance, disc-shaped too, but with a more stocky and compact body. According to the naturalist, the pacus are vegetarian, and eat  principally seeds and fruits . So they are generally found beneath the overhanging  trees, waiting for the fall down of highly energetic fruits, berries and seeds that they swallow under water or to the surface, doing noisy eddies.The pacus also feed with algas that grow on the rocks, and don't desdain to scrunch some fries, water snails, freshwater crabs and shrimps. In facts the pacus are omnivorous, maybe with a vegetarian propensity. Fishes of fast waters, they are found principally in the rapids, in the midst of the rocky clusters and downstream of the water falls.

The tackle:

The defense of the pacu remenbers the trevally's one, and when one thinks that the average weight of the pacu is between 4 to 10 pounds, with extremes for the largest species that can reach 50 pounds, it's obvious that we have to take some precautions. So a solid 10 range rod plenty of backbones will be the perfect tool to throw a hight density line necessary to prospect the deep and fast waters where stay the pacus, to animate the flies and to control the stubborn defense of these stout fishes. A high quality progressive disc-brake reel will be indispensable to help us  to conclude the hard fights with large fishes in powerfull currents. 

                             

                               black pacu ( Maroni river. F. Guiana)

The technique:

Your experience in wet fly with salmonids will serve you. The lines will be sinking in differents densities suitable to the depht and the speedness of the current. The lines like " teeny nymph" with high density tip are a must for this purpose. We have to know that the pacus dont feed to the bottom. Its jaw slightly prognathous characterize the fish that are mainly interested by what happens close to the surface. So it will  not be necessary to scrape the bed of the river.When targeting pacus, focus your attention on concave edges in the  turnings of the rivers. It's in these sectors where the current carries amounts of fruits, seeds, vegetals fragments and food in general. And the fishes know it. So cast your fly slightly upstream  of the hot spots ( turnings, under overhanging palm or fruit trees, down stream of falls,etc.), let sink and strip slowly your imitation. Beware of the tremendous shock...

                      

                            seed-fly( dressed by L.F Pinheiro)

The flies:

Tarpons patterns which colours and size evoke the fruits which constitue the main food of the pacus, work very well. Yellow, orange, black, purple seaducers are good models. But maybe, imitations of fruits and seeds dressed according to their real appearances and colours, with yarn or deer hair would be the panacea...Some south-american flyfishermen use this type of " fly" with  regular results. And don't forget a hard mono or fluorocarbon shock-tippet, because if the teeth of the pacou are not as cutting as the ones of its relative the piranha, they are formidable millstones able to grind in a stroke, seeds whose kernel has the hardness of an olive's one.

                         

                          a 20 pounder pacu pirapitinga