THE ULTIMATE ANGLING BUCKET LIST

Left to their own devices, crabs, prawns and other small crustaceans are probably their primary food
source, though the frequency with which they are found inside lobster pots also suggests that fish and
scavenging are equally acceptable given the opportunity, which fits in nicely with how most are taken
by anglers.
Small cut fish baits, and to a lesser extent squid strips presented at or close to the bottom are as good as
anything, though ragworm will also take its share. As for trace construction, this will depend on whether
you are fishing at anchor or on the drift.
At anchor you can place baits on the bottom without much risk of loosing everything to a snag, unlike
drift fishing, where it pays to go for short droppers above the lead like a feather rig, allowing it to just
touch bottom and lifting it clear at the first hint of a hang-up.
Monofilament breaking strain isn't crucial to beat teeth or anything here, though I find that twenty to
thirty pounds breaking strain does give a better presentation, and as importantly still won't put fish off.
Size one hooks are probably about right.
Thinking back to the venues I've caught them at, and looking
at the spread of venues quoted in the various home waters
record lists, this should not prove a difficult fish to find, and
providing the bait and hook sizes are right, not a difficult
fish to catch either.
We used to see a lot out over the Eddystone reef, around the
Holyhead area of Anglesey, and up into Scottish waters as
far north as the Pentland firth. I've seen some particularly
big ones fishing out from Scrabster which holds the current
Scottish record at three pounds, though for some reason not
the British record which is more than half a pound lighter,
despite Scotland contributing to the overall British record
List.
The Isle of Man too can produce a lot, and we also used to
get quite a few when boat fishing along the south and west
coast of Ireland.
Dawn, Male & Female Cuckoo Wrasse
From the shore, Lundy Island and Rhoscolyn Head on
Anglesey have been my most productive marks. A fish you
shouldn't have to try too hard to tick off the list, but at the
same time, one you can enhance your chances of
encountering simply by scaling down accordingly.
CORKWING WRASSE Crenilabrus melops
Bucket List status – result
If you regularly fish moderately deep areas of heavy ground over-looked by safe rock ledges, or the
bouldery bases of deep harbour walls using small pieces of ragworm on size six or eight hooks under a
sliding float straight down the face, if you then carefully examine all the small 'ballan wrasse' this will
deliver, you are almost certainly going to find other previously over-looked small growing wrasse
species mixed in amongst them, the most common of which is going to be the corkwing wrasse, which
closely fits the ballan wrasse description given earlier to the point of easy confusion.
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