Black Bream is a real fighter. They’re always on the move and punch well above their weight, what’s not to like about these spirited fighters?
Possible location for Catching Black Bream
The presence of black bream on your property is not guaranteed, but there are a few natural markers that, when found, can steer you in the right direction and offer you a realistic possibility of success.
From late June to early September, they are at their most prolific in almost every region of the world. If you are able to routinely fish the English Channel coast, particularly the counties of Sussex, Hampshire, and Dorset, or the Channel Islands, capturing a black bream off the beach is not difficult at all.
Seasonal availability of Black Bream
In Devon and Cornwall, the bream usually appears in April, reaches its peak throughout the summer, and then disappears during the autumn. Along the Welsh coast, they normally approach closer inshore about the middle of May and remain until the beginning of September, or even longer if the warm weather continues, but the first fall gales force them farther out into the Atlantic.
Further north, off the coast of Cumbria and near the Mull of Galloway, they may be seen as early as late May, although the majority of the time they are seen around mid-June. They are often present till the beginning of September.
Suitable Ground for Black Bream
When it comes to beach anglers, the most apparent clue is to see whether the charter boats off your area are already catching bream. Though they may be fishing reefs in deeper water, there is a considerable probability that bream may move inshore and feed on rough terrain that is accessible from deep-water rock ledges. Fishing for bream from the rocks in Devon and Cornwall, off the Lleyn Peninsula in North Wales, from a Cumbrian mark, and from the rocks off the Mull of Galloway are all possibilities, as is catching bream from the rocks off the coast of Scotland.
You should look for reefs or rocky terrain that extends inwards from deeper water to a small area of inshore water. Breams are less likely to be caught if there is uneven terrain in close proximity to clean sand leading into deeper water. Bream shoals often follow the rocky terrain inshore from deep water and very occasionally wash in over smooth sand, according to experts. Black bream make sporadic appearances in the estuaries of Devon and Cornwall’s smaller rivers. Fal and Helford systems spring to mind, albeit the fish in these systems are usually smaller, up to approximately eight ounces in weight, with the occasional greater fish.
It is necessary to locate mussel beds and sections of rougher terrain or rocky outcrops as near as possible to the deeper channels and the mouth of the estuary in this area. It is worthwhile to seek for bladderwrack on rocky ground in places where it is abundant. Fishing for bream is rather straightforward from shore if the water is more than 10 feet deep, which is usually the case in the estuary. They seem to be less enthusiastic about working in shallow water so close to the coast.
Shallow reef ground that flows in from the seaward side of beaches with rough ground or even broken ground may be hotspots on the open coast, especially in the summer. For the time being, I’m thinking of southern and central Wales, namely the Swansea region and, more specifically, the area within Cardigan Bay, where a line of shallow reefs runs all the way inshore.
However, since the fish like to hang out below the low water line in somewhat deeper water, low water fishing and early flood fishing are the greatest times to catch them because you can easily reach them. Depths must be between six and ten feet deep. It is difficult for them to swim in shallower water on these beaches due of the surge and surf, which they do not like.
Specific indicator of Black Bream
Eel grass beds and bootlace weed beds are two kinds of terrain that nearly always produce bream. Fish such as bream scurry between the fronds looking for food. In shallow wish water, both eel grass and bootlace weed may be found in depths of a few feet at low water, and on the highest spring tides, they can even be found partly dried up on the sandbar.
But whereas the bootlace prefers to grow on soft substrates such as sand, fine gravel, or sand mixed with fine gravel, the eel grass prefers hard surfaces such as pebbles or rock strata. If you have an option, choose the bootlace weed beds over the others. When walking down the beach, check for loose strands that have washed ashore as a clue. Alternatively, climb to the top of sand dunes or surrounding hills with polaroid glasses and look for the underwater shadow that tells where the beds are located.
The ideal time to search is at an extreme spring tide low water. The bream remain over and in the weed all the way through the flood tide, but they move through in shoals on the way out. Sport is often characterised by bursts of speed and fury, followed by periods of inactivity, followed by bursts of speed and fury again. Breams are a fish that is always on the go.
Specific WEATHER for Black Bream
Breams despise bad weather and a surf that runs over the top of the weed beds, among other things. They can withstand a little surge in water that is more than 20 feet deep, but not much more. In order to find deeper water offshore where the sea state is more stable, their inclination is to dive into the ocean.
Calm waters, gentle onshore breezes of no more than Force 3!, and a general cloud cover are the best conditions for shore bream. They will catch fish in direct sunlight, but the finest catches are made when the sky is cloudy or overcast and overcast.
Tidal effect on Catching Black Bream
While breams are most often found in clear water with minimal silt, they are often taken in the daytime and the twilight of a short summer night, however they are seldom caught completely out of the water. Tides are not very significant.
It is likely that bream will remain in an area for an extended length of time if you are able to access weed beds or rough terrain on neaps when the depth of water is more than normal. When the tides are low in the spring, the fish keep clear at low water because the weed beds are shallow and semi-dry.
When the depth grows enough, it will be mid-tide, and then it will be over high water that the fish will be seen present. Using the same height of tide as before, you will be able to calculate that they will appear at almost the same time and will alter when the tides change in size and depth.
When the ebb begins to rise, bream will not remain in one spot and will go deeper into the water. If you catch bream over high water, they’ll normally be gone by the time the tide comes in during the ebb.
TACKLE for catching Black Bream
When fishing for bream, casting distance is frequently critical. While paired with a Penn 525 type multiplier or equivalent, a regular 12-13ft beach caster rated at four to six ounces provides you with the distance and strength you need to draw through dense bootlace weed or when rock ledge fishing on the ledges. Load the reel with 18-2016 line and a 60-pound shock leader to get started.
A 14ft Continental rod rated to 200g and a Penn Spin fisher 7500LC loaded with 20-30lb braid and a 60lb braid leader are two of my favourite combinations. In addition, the thin braid displays bites better, casts to greater distances, and can battle a quicker tidal run if necessary. In an estuary, you may be able to get away with a bass rod rated for two or three ounces and a 5000-size fixed spool loaded with 201b braid on occasion.
This provides an excellent opportunity for the bream to demonstrate their fighting skills, which are much superior to their size and weight ratio. In order to fish at range using 20lb fluorocarbon hook lengths of around 15 inches long, rigs may be as simple as a two-hook loop or as complex as a one-up, one-down clipped setup The fluorocarbon is beneficial in combating the sharp teeth of a bream.
Rigs for catching Black Bream
A rig or fishing amid bootlace weed is a certain way to get attention. Continue to use the one up, one down method, but reduce the length of the hooks to between nine and twelve inches. Remove the hook and slip on a rubber float stop, one or two float beads, and another rubber float stop before tying it on. Two float beads are more than enough to completely lift a tiny bait when using two float beads.
Even a little amount will help to raise the body and promote mobility. To make the hook length almost vertical, add four or five float beads, depending on how many you want. This will keep the bait suspended in the bream’s area of vision and keep the hook length near vertical. The fact that they are wearing coloured beads does not bother them.
I prefer to leave approximately four inches of hook length between the front float bead and the hook to allow for bait movement and to provide the bream enough space to properly accept the bait while I’m fishing.
It is preferable to use an Aberdeen type hook, such as the Kamasan B940, which has a lengthy shank. Using a shank g, you may aid to protect the hook length from the teeth of the bream.
For little bream, a size 6 to 4 is sufficient, but for larger fish, a size 2 is the maximum size that may be used. Small hooks, particularly those that have been chemically sharpened, might become dull depending on the kind of ground. To give your hooks a fast sharpen, use a JAG Max file on them.
BAIT selection for catching black bream
Breams are not picky eaters, and they will eat almost everything. Tiny bits of peeler crab, cockles, mussels, lugworms, and ragworms, small slices of razorfish, mackerel and sandeel strips, and squid strips are all good baits for catching striped bass. Keep your baits tiny, with just enough to completely conceal the hook but not so little that the tip is obscured.
In the case of fish and squid strips, cut them into strips that are about 1 inch long and no wider than half an inch. The supermarket prawn is one bat that works very well at catching bream. When threading around the bend and up the hook shank, these are the best shapes for the job. Add a couple wraps of bait elastic to complete the look.
It is possible to fish with two rods and cover a larger area by experimenting with various baits and spreading the casts out more widely. Having one in the centre of the weed bed and one on the border of the weed bed might be beneficial since the larger bream will often work to the rear and side of the main shoal while fishing.
Top Tactics for catching Black Bream
The fact that bream swimming in a shoal will lift and descend as individual fish is worth noticing. Some bream will swim well down to the bottom, while others will make their way up and down above the rest. It is because of this shuffle that a pop-up rig is effective. Think about how you’re going to play the fish and where you’re going to land it if you’re fishing over rough or mixed tough terrain at range when fishing.
Bream will rattle the rod tip and turn broadside to the tide, increasing the pressure on the fish. They are skilled at manoeuvring over stones or rocks and may grab you in the process. Consider positioning yourself in a location where there is nothing evident that may go in your way and where it is feasible to play the fish straight into shallowing ground without worrying about hitting any snags.
A breakout weight is preferable because it keeps the rig fixed, the baits in their feeding zone, and it increases the likelihood that a fish will hook itself against the weight of the lead. When a fish accepts a basic bomb, the bomb might move along the seafloor and does not always have enough inertia to set the hook.
When a fish pulls at the bait, the rod tip will rattle in a succession of quick rattles as the fish rips. A hooked fish will cause the rod tip to sink, then shake and rattle as the fish attempts to bore free from the hook. Any fish, no matter how little (2lb), will provide a good fight when hooked from far out in the water.
There will be moments when you hear the rattles, but the fish will not bite the bait. Depending on how long you wait, either the fish will return to the bait or another fish will come across what is left of the bait, depending on how long you have been waiting.
Black bream are a fantastic fish to catch from the beach, and they are frequently there even when they are not visible on the fishing radar. Examine your surroundings, identify some plausible landmarks, then give it a go. It’s possible that you’ll receive a nice surprise.