Cichla kelberi · Cichlidae · predator
Brazil's most fished peacock bass. Native to the Araguaia-Tocantins and spread across reservoirs and dams in almost the whole country.
Also called: tucunaré-amarelo, tucunaré-comum, tucunaré
Choose the place and the species. The index, from 0 to 100, combines weather, sun, moon and tide with each fish's habits. Up to 28 days, with each day's confidence.
Reading the weather across 3 global models and 31 simulations…
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.
Choose how many fishing days. We compare each stretch by its average index, discount days with a warning or closed season, and show the 3 best.
Line: the middle value of 31 simulations of the American GEFS model. Band: where 8 out of 10 fall. Narrow, firm trend; wide, high uncertainty.
Native to the Araguaia-Tocantins, the yellow peacock bass was introduced to reservoirs in Paraná, São Francisco, the Northeast and the Southeast, and is now the peacock bass most people fish for. It is smaller than the blue and the açu, but eagerly strikes surface and mid-water lures. It lives in still or slow water, near stake fields, timber, water hyacinth and shallow coves. It pairs up to spawn and defends the nest aggressively, which makes fishing easier at that stage. It depends on warm water: in Southeast winters activity drops sharply. Where it was introduced, it reduces lambari and other native fish populations.
Three dark vertical bars on the flank, golden-yellow to greenish body and a black ocellus with a golden ring on the tail. The surest mark is the white spots on the ventral and anal fins and on the lower lobe of the tail. The blue has five bars. The popoca has fainter bars and lacks these white spots. It rarely exceeds 4 kg.
Native to the Araguaia and Tocantins rivers. Introduced to reservoirs on the Paraná, Paranaíba, Grande and Tietê rivers, to the São Francisco, to dams in the Northeast, to lagoons on the Rio Doce and to the Manso reservoir (MT).
Habitat: Stake fields, timber, water hyacinth beds, shallow coves and edges of reservoirs and dams; oxbow lagoons on rivers.
native to the basins
introduced in
states
Tocantins, Goiás, Mato Grosso, Pará, Maranhão, São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso do Sul, Paraná, Bahia, Pernambuco, Ceará, Rio Grande do Norte, Paraíba, Piauí, Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro, Distrito Federal
In Southeast and Center-West reservoirs the season runs from September to March. On the Araguaia, the dry season from June to October concentrates fish in the lagoons.
Daytime, with peaks at dawn and dusk. Active by day. Surface fishing pays off early and late in the afternoon; in the hot hours it stays in the shade of timber and stake fields.
The factor that weighs most outside the Amazon. A cold front shuts fishing down for 2 to 4 days.
Stable, warm days are best. A pressure drop before rain gives a short peak.
Small effect.
Light rain doesn't bother it. Runoff that muddies the reservoir makes it worse.
A full reservoir hides fish in flooded vegetation; a falling one concentrates them on points and stake fields.
Moderately sensitive. Avoid knocking the hull near timber.
Light chop helps surface lures. Strong wind hurts casting into the stake fields.
Usually between 0.5 and 3 m; in winter it drops a little.
lures
natural baits
accessories
In stake fields, cast right against the stick and start working the lure as soon as it lands: the yellow usually hits on the first pull.
Casting in lagoons, marshes, small reservoirs and vegetated reservoir edges, using frogs, sapito, zara and buzzbait.
ready-made kitBoat fishing in large reservoirs in SP, MG, GO, MS and PR, where blue and yellow peacock bass were introduced. Clear water, pressured fish and plenty of submerged structure.
ready-made kitFly fishing in rivers and lakes of the Amazon and the Pantanal, from a boat or wading in shallow water.
guideHow to read down imaging, side imaging and live sonar to find structure, confirm fish and get back to the right spot.
guideFrom a properly filled spool to drag set with a scale: the basics for the reel to work for you and last for years.
guideWhat the numbers and letters engraved on the rod mean, and how to match rod, line, lure and reel for each kind of fishing.
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 (Portaria GM/MMA 1.667/2026). Outside the Araguaia-Tocantins it is an invasive exotic that affects native fish.
In Tocantins it is only allowed to keep yellow peacock bass between 30 and 50 cm, measured from the tip of the snout to the end of the tail. Fish outside the window go back into the water. Under Portaria NATURATINS nº 44/2026, until February 2029 amateur and sport anglers may only transport one native fish per angler.
Source: Portaria NATURATINS/GABIN nº 47/2026 (annexes amended by Portaria nº 105/2026)
Until December 31, 2028, peacock bass (Cichla spp.) caught in Mato Grosso rivers may not be transported, stored or sold. Amateur anglers may only practice catch and release; the on-site consumption quota does not apply to the 12 species on the list. The law allows the restriction to be lifted where the species is declared exotic, such as in the Manso reservoir, but that depends on a complementary act: confirm with Sema-MT.
Source: Lei estadual nº 12.434/2024 (MT), arts. 19-B and 19-C of Lei 9.096/2009
Transport, storage and sale are fully prohibited for 5 years from Jan 1, 2024 for: cachara, caparari, dorado, jaú, matrinchã (Brycon spp.), pintado/surubim (Pseudoplatystoma spp.), piraíba, piraputanga, pirarara, arapaima (pirarucu), trairão and peacock bass (tucunaré, Cichla spp.). For recreational anglers: catch and release only. These 12 species may not even be eaten on site, since the 2 kg or 1 fish limit excludes the art. 19-B list. The law cites jaú as Zungaro zungaro; we also include the Pantanal jaú (Z. jahu) out of caution. The list may still change: § 2 (exotic and predatory species), § 3 (review through study) and the 3-year assessment planned for 2027. A TJMT news report of Jun 2, 2026 confirms the 12 prohibited species. The STF denied a preliminary injunction in the ADIs against the law in 2024; we found no merits ruling.
Commercial and recreational peacock bass fishing is prohibited in the Água Boa do Univini, Itapará, Xeruini, Jufari and Jauaperi rivers and their tributaries. Only sport fishing, by companies licensed by Femarh with a maximum of 2 barbless hooks per bait, and subsistence fishing by riverside residents, are allowed.
Source: Lei estadual RR nº 1.540/2021, amended by Lei nº 2.112/2025
Source: IN Semad-GO nº 17/2026, Annex I, Araguaia-Tocantins basin (on-site consumption only; zero transport)
Source: Portaria Naturatins nº 47/2026, Annex I, as amended by Portaria nº 105/2026
Source: INIs MPA/MMA nº 12/2011 (Araguaia) and 13/2011 (Tocantins), minimum size annexes
Allowed: Sport and guided fishing only in reservoirs, catch and release with barbless hooks (no keeping, transporting or eating). Subsistence: up to 5 kg per day, for household consumption only.
Allowed: All fishing modalities are prohibited in rivers, including catch and release (Law 9.096/2009, art. 19-A). Exceptions: subsistence fishing from shore (3 kg or 1 fish, no transport or sale) and scientific fishing. Law 13.159/2025 now allows licensed sport fishing in UHE/PCH hydropower reservoirs, natural lakes and border rivers, subject to a scientific study and a license from the environmental agency. We have not confirmed whether these licenses are already being issued.
Allowed: Recreational fishing only in reservoirs, with handline, rod, or spinning or baitcasting reel. Fish may only be eaten on site, not transported. Competitions prohibited. Subsistence: 3 kg + 1 fish. State rules (GO and TO) may be stricter.
Allowed: Recreational fishing only in reservoirs, with on-site consumption. Subsistence: 5 kg + 1 fish. State rules may be stricter.
Allowed: In 2025/26: catch and release with barbless hooks and recreational fishing card; subsistence fishing on foot or from a rowboat, with simple pole or handline.
Source: Portaria Naturatins nº 244/2025 (2025/26 season); INIs MPA/MMA nº 12 and 13/2011
Hold it by the mouth with a lip grip (boga) or with your thumb (small teeth, no danger), support the belly and release it quickly. During spawning, release the fish in the same spot: the nest depends on it.
White, firm flesh, very good fried in fillets, grilled or in moqueca. Where it is exotic, taking it home to eat helps native fish.
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.01122, b = 3.08; FishBase (bayesiano, dados da espécie)). 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.
The weather comes from three independent global models, cross-checked hour by hour: when they agree, confidence goes up; when they diverge, the band between them shows on the chart. Beyond 16 days, we use the GEFS ensemble of 31 simulations: if 20 of the 31 predict rain, the chance of rain is 65%. Sun and moon are calculated astronomically, with no uncertainty.
The index adds up, weighted for each species: time of day (species curve anchored to real sunrise and sunset), moon (transits, rise and set, phase), pressure (3 h trend and 24 h swing), water temperature (in rivers, estimated from air temperature; at sea, estimated by an ocean model), wind, rain, clouds, tide and the month in the species' cycle.
Accuracy measured in the reference project (4 regions, 93 days, forecast vs. observed): maximum temperature is off by 0.6 °C on average the next day and 1.7 °C at 7 days; rain of 5 mm or more is detected 76% of the time the next day and 57% at 7 days. Detection isn't everything: the false alarm rate isn't published here yet, and 93 days in 4 regions is still a small sample. We now also measure every day, at the app's destinations:
Your location is saved only on this device and feeds the forecast, the map and the "today" on the home page.
