Dhufish are one of WA’s most prized bottom fish, known for their solid fight and top-notch eating. They grow big, hit hard and keep plenty of offshore anglers coming back for another crack.
You’ll find dhufish along the lower west coast of Western Australia, mostly around broken reef, lumps, gravel patches and hard bottom. They’re common off places like Perth, Mandurah, Bunbury and down toward Albany, usually in 20 to 200 metres, but a lot of anglers target them in that mid-depth reef zone.
Dhufish are proper opportunistic feeders, picking off baitfish, squid, cuttlefish and crustaceans close to the bottom. They spend a lot of time around structure and broken ground, moving through reef edges and bait-rich patches to feed. Big fish often crunch a bait hard, but they’ll also eat a well-worked jig dropped right in front of them.
Tide matters most when it creates enough run to fire the reef up without making it impossible to hold bottom, and the change of tide often gives you a good bite window. Low light around dawn and dusk can be excellent, especially on pressured ground, though dhufish still feed through the day when the bait is there. Lighter winds make a huge difference because clean boat control and a straight drop help you stay on the fish. Smaller swell is usually better too, especially offshore, because it makes it safer and easier to fish accurately over reef and broken bottom.
Most WA anglers use a 15 to 30 lb overhead or spin setup with enough lead to stay near the bottom, plus a strong paternoster or running sinker rig. Fresh squid, cuttlefish, mulies and fish fillets all work well, and knife jigs or slow-pitch jigs are deadly when the fish are sitting on the sounder. Keep hooks solid and drags smooth because big dhuies fight dirty and head straight back for the reef.
Dhufish can make a proper croaking or grunting noise when they come aboard, which always gets a grin the first time you hear it.