Appearance & Identification
Exceptionally long, slender, and cylindrical body of a dark greenish-blue coloration on the back, fading to bright silver flanks and a pale belly. They have a long, pointed head with a massive, undershot lower jaw lined with prominent, needle-sharp canine teeth. Commonly grow to 40cm-60cm, reaching up to 1m and 3kg.
Habitat & Movements
Cool temperate waters of southern Australia, ranging from southern New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, to Western Australia. They prefer shallow inshore bays, seagrass beds, marine lagoons, and rocky reefs in depths from 1m to 20m.
Tackle Loadout
- Rods Fast-action spinning rod of 2.1m to 2.4m, rated for line classes between 2kg and 5kg, allowing for long casts with light lures.
- Reels Reliable, high-speed 2000 to 3000 size spinning reel with a fast retrieve ratio to keep pace with rapid strikes.
- Line & Leader 3kg to 6kg braided main line with a 1.5m leader of 6kg to 10kg fluorocarbon. A short, light wire trace is recommended when targeting them with expensive lures to prevent bite-offs.
Best Lures & Baits
- Artificials Highly responsive to slender, long minnow hardbodies (9cm to 13cm), soft plastic baitfish, and metal spoons. Bright silver, chrome, and blue patterns are deadly.
- Live & Cut Baits Fresh strips of squid, garfish, or pilchards. Present these baits on a three-hook gang hook rig (1/0 to 2/0) and retrieve or troll slowly through seagrass beds.
Field Tactics
- Trolling Highly effective trolling method. Troll slender, shallow-running minnow hardbodies or rigged garfish at 2 to 4 knots over the top of shallow seagrass beds.
- Drifting & Jigging Drifting over seagrass beds while slowly retrieving a ganged bait or soft plastic behind the boat, keeping the bait positioned just above the weed tips.
- Fly Fishing Light 6 to 8-weight fly rod with a floating or intermediate line, casting long, slender flash baitfish flies with a short wire tippet.
State Legal Limits
SA: Minimum size limit is 45cm. Daily bag limit of 20 (Spencer Gulf), 10 (Gulf St Vincent/Kangaroo Island), 20 (other waters). Combined boat limits apply.
VIC: Minimum legal size is 30cm. Combined daily bag limit of 10 (longfin pike and snook).
WA: Daily bag limit of 8 per person. No minimum size limit applies.
TAS: No minimum size limit. Daily bag limit of 15.
NSW/QLD/NT: Standard limits apply.
Final Logistics & Table Quality
- Field Notes Look for clean breaks in the seagrass beds. Snook lie in wait along the edges of weed beds to ambush passing baitfish; retrieve your lures directly over these sand-weed interfaces.
- Eating Qualities Moderate to good eating quality when prepared fresh. Features soft, sweet, white fillets with a slightly oily texture. Best suited to pan-frying with a light flour dusting, baking, or smoking. Bleed immediately upon capture and skin the fillets.
