I am renting a house in Naples Florida, which has a small 1/4 acre pond behind the house. Everyday, Anahingus Birds come into the pond and within 5-10 minutes they come up with a Nice Sized Fish. I have identified the fish as a Mayan Cichlid. Since the birds are so successful at fishing, I am guessing that there are a load of them in the pond.
I have tried various methods to catch them, but have been unable to thus far. I am a Fly Fisherman and was hoping to get these fish on my 5 weight fly rod. I tried everything that I could think of matching what the Cichlids eat. small fish, shrimp, insects etc. to no avail. Fast retrieve, slow retrieve, surface, on the bottom etc.
So, I tried some bait to see if I could catch them. First I tried some sweet corn on a small hook. The bobber sat there for a half hour until I caught a turtle. Then some bits of fresh shrimp, again the bobber sat there again for about a half hour until I caught 2 turtles.
While fishing I have never seen any Mayans following my fly or swimming in the water. Or any surface activity. I have seen a couple of small Largemouth Bass and flipped my fly to him and he promptly ate and was caught.
Can someone help me unlock this mystery? Am I right in assuming that there must be a load of Mayans here if the birds are so successful? What bait would be the best to catch these Mayans? They would be an ideal Fly Rod fish, if I could 'Crack the Code'.
