Super fish tagger rates 88 candles
HAPPY birthday to long- time Bohle River custodian Keith “Doc” Harveyson.
Two fat ladies, 88. That’s how many candles the well- known angler and retired physician will blow out today when he celebrates with friends and family.
Harveyson might be best known for his fish tagging exploits during the past few decades when he pinned no less than 10,000 fish with identifying tags before releasing his catch – all in the name of fisheries science.
Many of those fish, select priority species from bream and javelin to fingermark and barra, were fooled when Harveyson cast his baits and lures within his favoured Bohle River.
He recalls tagging in excess of 200 barra in a fortnight when anglers were fewer and throwing a cast net easier for a man with younger arms.
Several hundred of those tagged fish have been recaptured by surprised local and visiting anglers – some fish at liberty for several years and other travelling many kilometres as they migrate between estuary systems.
And there seems no slowing down for Harveyson, my dear mate encouraging me to install a new sonar in his ageing tinny just a few weeks ago.
Quality stacks up
FORMER Townsville resident Stephen Alldridge has found the freshwater fishing scene in much the same health as when he left for southern climes nearly eight years ago.
Back in the North for a short stint, Alldridge recently shared in a catch- and- release haul of more than 80 jungle perch while wading cool gurgling waters of a mountain stream north of Townsville.
He said the fishing was incredible with several perch stretching better than 40cm and certainly the maximum 35cm legal size for the revered species proving commonplace.
The self- confessed fishing nut and his mate used mostly surface lures to draw savage strikes from hungry fish and hinted that the further the pair pressed into the headwaters of the stream, the more numerous and bigger the perch.
Alldridge is a man not afraid to travel a lot of miles to satisfy his freshwater addiction and backed up that amazing perch catch with some of the fattest fat sooty grunter or black bream from the Burdekin River earlier this week.
Surface lures were ditched in favour of vibe style lures that were allowed to sink in fast waters well below the Burdekin Falls Dam.
Again the strikes were savage and the battles torrid affairs when light braid lines were easily pulled from the small baitcast reels.
Alldridge said he had been casting lures in that particular section of the river since the late ’ 80s and claimed the quality of the fishing as good as he had seen.
Thieves target crab pots
THIEVES, it seems, are hard at work in Cleveland Bay waters with a spate of crab pot thefts angering local anglers.
Alligator Creek was hit hard last weekend with ropes and floats left dangling from mangroves after pots were separated from lines with a sharp implement.
At least one of the brazen culprits even took time out to tie rocks to the end of the severed ropes in order for all to appear well until the owner attempted to pull their traps.
Another report tells of expensive and heavy traps pinched from the shallow waters guarding the mouth of Cocoa or Inlet Creek.
Stiff penalties await those caught flouting fisheries regulations with on- the- spot fines in excess of $ 200 for possession of undersized crabs to more than $ 1200 for interfering with crabbing apparatuses.
Anglers can report suspected illegal fishing practices, including tampering with crab pots not belonging to one’s self, to the Fishwatch Hotline on 1800 017 116.
Nets claim mammals
MEANWHILE, northern commercial fishers and their fishing practices have been placed under the microscope by conservation groups and recreational anglers after the deaths of large marine mammals, including dugong and snubfin dolphin.
A report by authorities has sponsored by revealed two snubfin dolphins had drowned after being entangled in a commercial fishing net in October.
“The fisher who caught the dolphins followed all required fishing rules and protocols, including attendance of the net and reporting of the incident,” a Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority said.
The report also identified four dugong found dead within Bowling Green Bay waters during September and October, at least one killed by a commercial fishing net and a second was found floating near similar apparatuses.
GBRMPA said another two carcasses in the area were too decomposed to determine a cause of death. Privacy concerns were cited when the authority refused to reveal where the snubfin dolphins died, the animals recovered by marine park officers and taken to a university for research and examination.
Anglers are encouraged to report sightings and locations of sick, entangled, stranded or dead megafauna including dugong, dolphins, turtles and crocodiles to the RSPCA hotline on 1300 ANIMAL ( 1300 264 625)