Species profile
John Dory fishing in Ireland
John Dory in Irish waters. Catchable May to October, peak May to October. How to identify the thumbprint flank, and why it is a southwest deep-water rarity.
Quick answer
John Dory in Irish waters. Catchable May to October, peak May to October. How to identify the thumbprint flank, and why it is a southwest deep-water rarity.
In season
Typical size
Conservation
Irish record
3.4 kg (7 lb 8 oz) · Killala Bay, 1894
Irish Specimen Fish Committee record list, checked 17 August 2026. A specimen-class fish is well below this, the record is the ceiling, not the target.
Season on the coast
Peak and catchable months on the Wicklow shore.
Catchable May to Oct
- Peak
- Catchable
- Off season
- This month
Where they live
Deep, clear, sheltered water over mixed ground on the south and west coasts, where it stalks small shoaling fish.
What to use
Live or fresh dead small fish · Float-fished sprat · Small sandeel · Slow-worked soft plastics
How to fish them
Present a small fish bait slowly over deep clear water in calm late-summer conditions; John Dory stalk prey and will not chase a fast lure.
Optional detail
Kit, marks and more
Bait sourcing, starter gear, Wicklow and Dublin marks, related guides. Expand when you need the shopping list or mark directory.
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Get your bait
The bait that works here comes off the shore, not out of a box.
Sandeel is raked or netted out of clean sand, and it fishes best the day you get it.
Work clean low-water sand on a spring tide from late spring through summer, when the eels are in close.
How to get and rig fresh sandeel →Kit that keeps collected bait fishable
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Bait elastic thread
Binds soft collected bait to the hook so it survives the cast.
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Vented bait box
Keeps crab and worm alive and separated on the way home and back out.
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Insulated cool bag
Collected bait dies in a warm car. Cold and dark buys you a day or two.
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Chest waders
Low-water crab and worm ground means wet feet and cold gullies.
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Bait scissors
Cuts crab, worm and fish bait cleanly without mangling it.
Suggested gear
Starter searches matched to tactics above
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Float rod, 2.7m
Soft enough to protect a light hooklength on a close-range fish.
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Slip float set
Sets bait depth over harbour walls and deep pier corners.
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Size 8 fine wire hooks
Small enough for bread flake, maggot and a scrap of worm.
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6lb mono hooklength
Light line for clear harbour water and shy fish.
Related guides and tools
Marks, tactics, bait, gear, and the daily plan for this species
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Irish Shore Fishing editorial
Written and checked on the Wicklow coast.
Target john dory on the daily plan
Ranked marks, species windows, and gear for the Wicklow shore.