Anglers’ rich pickings
NQ’S BIGGEST FISH
PEOPLE living in North Queensland are lucky to be able to catch some of the world’s most highly soughtafter fish and crustaceans.
Fisheries Queensland data showcases the array of species caught by anglers around Townsville last year.
Mud crabs, common coral trout and school mackerel were the most commonly kept fish by anglers who launched at the Townsville Recreational Boating Park Ramp.
Fishing charter operator and Townsville Bulletin columnist Eddie Riddle said he was not surprised by the variety of fish the warm waters of Townsville offered.
“That’s just tropical North Queensland,” he said.
Mr Riddle warned this balanced on a fine knife’s edge, however, as revealed in the kept fish data from the Bohle River boat ramp.
Barramundi did not get a mention in the data from the river, which was once regarded as one of the best barra fisheries in the state.
“The Bohle is not as good as it used to be,” Mr Riddle said. “It was one of the major rivers on the east coast of Queensland.
“There’s a lot more pressure on the Bohle River than there ever was.”
Mr Riddle said the developing urban sprawl north of Townsville and commercial fishing operations had taken a toll on the barra population.
He said technology such as side-scanning fish finders, while helping anglers, needed to be used wisely.
“We can now look 80m each side of us,” he said.
“We’re finding populations of fish we would never have normally found. We do have to be careful how we use
Bowen: Spanish mackerel 1.4m
Townsville: Spanish mackerel 1.25m
Lucinda: Spanish mackerel 1.25m
Cardwell: Barramundi 1m Bohle River: Gold spotted rock cod 83cm
Morriseys: Barramundi 73cm it and how we share it.”
Mr Riddle said it was important to share such information carefully to stop spots from getting “flogged” as some of these spots could hold congregations of breeding fish.
He said there was a growing ethos among anglers to release most fish, which was supported by the catch and release data in the Fisheries Queensland’s survey.
“Even though you can catch a 1.2m barra, very few people will keep one over a metre,” he said.