Hoplias malabaricus, aka Tararira, is one of the most popular game fish to catch on flies or lures around Buenos Aires. Not so long ago, someone decided to nickname them “the Wolf Fish” which isn’t all that accurate, considering they don’t look or behave like wolves. Blame the Internet.
Anyway, one thing nobody can deny is that they look as mean as they come. Razor-sharp teeth line jaws that can only be compared to a bulldog, coupled with a body built to lunge forward in hard-hitting attacks and you have a badass species like few others on Earth. It is hard to describe them in terms of their moods because they can go from being quite simple and basic to particularly complex and hard to understand. Certain aspects of Tararira fishing might resemble Largemouth Bass fishing. At their finest, you can expect explosive surface takes, just don’t try to ¨lip¨ them if you value keeping your fingers and thumbs. 2-to-6 lb fish represent the most frequent catches, with fish larger than 7 pounds being rare but not impossible in certain places. Chances for sight fishing are abundant. In general, they’re not long runners, but head-shaking jumps are to be expected, and, again, the out-of-nowhere surface takes make this a species every fly angler should check off their list.
