Menticirrhus americanus
The fish of the surf. Digs in the sand for tatuí and corrupto, and it is the school of surf casting.
Also called: papa-terra, betara, betara-preta, embetara
The betara, or papa-terra, is the beach fish par excellence. It lives in the surf zone and in the channels of sandy beaches along the whole coast, digging the bottom for tatuí, corruptos, polychaetes and small crustaceans. It moves in small groups and follows the rising water: the first hours of the rising tide and the backwash after a series of waves are the right moments. It is small, 20 to 40 cm, but fights well on beach tackle and forms schools. It is the school of surf casting: it teaches you to read the beach, find gutters and feel the bite. White, delicate meat, one of the best fries on the coast.
Elongated, rounded body, rounded snout that projects past the mouth, which is underneath, and a single short thick barbel on the chin. Silvery grey to dark, with dark V-shaped oblique bands on the flanks. Tail with a pointed upper lobe and a rounded lower one. Difference from the croaker: only one barbel and a rounded body. The white betara (M. littoralis) is paler and without clear bands.
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Each card shows the day's index (0 to 100) and, below it, a strip with the index for each hour, from 0h to 23h. from poor to excellent.
The whole Brazilian coast on sandy beaches, especially the open-sea beaches of the Southeast and South.
Habitat: Surf zone and channels (gutters) of sandy beaches, inlet mouths and bays with sandy bottoms.
coast
states
Amapá, Pará, Maranhão, Piauí, Ceará, Rio Grande do Norte, Paraíba, Pernambuco, Alagoas, Sergipe, Bahia, Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Paraná, Santa Catarina, Rio Grande do Sul
In the South and Southeast the best season runs from spring to autumn, peaking at the end of summer; in winter it declines but still shows up on calm-sea days. In the Northeast, all year.
Daytime, with peaks at dawn and dusk. Bites by day, with peaks at dawn, at dusk and in the first hours of the rising tide.
A cold front cools the shore and drives the betara away for a few days.
Best with stable weather and a moderate sea; after a front, with a rough sea, it's poor.
Small effect; big tides dig the gutters deeper.
Light rain doesn't bother it.
Surf changes the sandbars: after it, look for new gutters.
Not very sensitive; don't wade into the gutter you're going to fish.
Strong onshore wind makes foam and drags the sinker; a land breeze leaves the sea flat and the betara wary.
The rising tide is the betara's tide: the first three hours, with water flowing into the gutters, produce best. On the falling tide, fish the mouths of the return channels. At low-tide slack it disappears from the shore.
Gutters 0.5 to 3 m inside the surf.
natural baits
accessories
Collect tatuí on the same beach where you'll fish. Cast short, into the gutter just past the first break: the betara feeds close to the shore.
Sand fishing with sinker and natural bait beyond the surf, after pompano, betara and croaker.
guideFind troughs, sandbars and rip currents, choose tide and time, and fish the rocky shore without risking your life.
guidePaternoster, 2-to-3-hook rig, pyramid sinker, feeder float for mullet and a rig for pompano, with practical measurements and the shock leader that prevents accidents.
guideWhere to cast the line, how to use the tide, which rod and rig are enough to start, sand baits, sea rules, and how to fish without risking the waves.
Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.
Conservation: Not on the national list of threatened species.
IN MMA 53/2005 sets 20 cm for the betara (papa-terra) on the coast from ES to RS, but names the white betara (Menticirrhus littoralis) specifically. The black betara (M. americanus) does not appear in the annex: use 20 cm as a reference and confirm with the competent agency.
Source: IN MMA nº 53/2005 (coast from ES to RS; total length)
Small fish swallow the hook deep: use a circle hook or a long-shank hook, unhook with pliers and release it in the foam.
White, delicate meat. Fried whole or as breaded fillets (à milanesa).
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.00813, b = 3.07; FishBase (estimativa bayesiana, comprimento total)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.
estimated weight
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The season weights (months), the time of day and the sensitivities (cold, pressure, moon, wind, rain, tide, strong light, murky water and noise) are the app's editorial estimates, based on the literature below and on the field experience of anglers and guides. They are not official data nor a measurement made for this species, and they may vary by region and year. Closed seasons and legal rules appear in the rules section, with the norm and a link.
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