This week's Fishing Article

PEDRO'S FISHING COLUMN
as seen in the
BALLARAT COURIER Friday the 10th of July 2009

Going back to basics. This is the way to learn and I did. We would come in to the boat ramp and the people would ask what did we get and what did we catch them on. My old mate who would answer fish hooks and then they would ask where did you get them. In the water was the reply. Then my old mate would tease them but these were the good old days. We would catch 30 per day – two fellows. Now days there is a bag limit of 10 bream per day and 7 if you don’t live there. So things are working against us. These are like a small snapper. There are the black bream. These are what Fred Wilson is on about. He loves to catch them so give them a go when you can



PEDROS BASKET

• The photograph this week is of Paul Farrugia with a 26kg blue fin tuna

• Two nice gummy sharks at Ocean Grove / Barwon Heads. These were 1.5 metres long. Now that is a great report. A few flathead going as well

• 2 blue fine tuna taken at Apollo Bay. They have come in real close

• I talked to Fred Wilson who just came back from Nelson on the Glenelg. He got some very big bream 2 weeks ago. These were about a kilo each. He got 7 one day then things got out of control. The little ones showed up. His mate that is fishing is Mary Styles. Fred said the best wood is a she oak. This is the toughest wood. People like pastry cooks use this all the time. There are also bull oaks growing along the river and you can weld with the fire it produces

• Things about cod. You need to get bardi grubs. They will fall out of trees and where they land on the wet leaves they will stay digging a hole in the banks of the river. Catching these fellows you can select rushes and like celery leave then in water then form a knot in the section of rush then the hunter can feed the knot down first. The grub will be waiting for it. As the knot comes down the grub will fasten on to the bull rush with its teeth. It will hang on till you pull the grub up to the surface. The other method is you damage the grub and it’s not natural. This is secret mens business. We will publish different articles for the Pedro column and you can join in and tell your knack at catching bait for whatever. Let us know what it is

• Next month is a good month to start bream fishing after I came back from catching marlin off Cairns many years ago when the skipper catches the fish for you. I went back to learning all about bream. It was the greatest challenge that I ever made. You have got to be a hunter in every way. You need to stalk them out. Now the easiest way of catching these is to use sand worm. Well it brings on everything. So you need say in Gippsland the shell bait like a miniature mussel about 20mm long and about 15mm wide. You need to have your line light by greasing he line. It will float on the water and you can tell of the movement that things are going on.

• The trout type of grease or muslin and you can see when the fish is taking it down. Once he has the bait on his mouth this give you the chance to strike and that is the hardest thing

• Chris Dempsey who hails from England is 72 and makes cricket pitch wickets at Old Bar which is Taree. He fishes the Manning River in New South Wales. He fishes for bait fish at the mouth now that is something that we don’t hear about

• Fisheries Victoria is looking for ideas from anglers to prepare a plan to further develop opportunities for recreational fishing in Victoria. Some suggestions have been to start a marine stocking program for species such as mulloway and bream, build more reefs in estuaries and ocean waters, and boost fisheries education to school children. Public seminars will be held across Victoria to start in July with dates and venues yet to be announced

• The outcome of a workshop to discuss options for creating a stock enhanced Macquarie perch fisher in Victoria have been posted on the Fisheries Victoria website at www.dpi.vic.gov.au/fishing. The paper outlines the viability of establishing a new Macquarie perch fishery and lists recommendations

• There is now improved access at Aringa Reservoir near Port Fairy. The existing track has been upgraded and will now provide year round access for boating and shore based fishers. There is now also a turning circle for vehicles. This reservoir is stocked regularly by Fisheries Victoria with 1000 rainbow trout and 500 brown trout stocked annually since 2004

• Did you know some species of sharks have been discovered to reproduce young by half cloning themselves. In 2001 a female hammerhead shark gave birth to a shark pup after being housed in an aquarium without coming into contact with a male shark for three. Years. The shark pup’s DNA confirmed that is was a half clone as it contained only half of her mothers DNA

• Round up – Corio Bay snapper are going 8.5kg at Cunningham Pier and off St Helens boat ramp

• Trevally at Queenscliff and some whiting at Corio Bay. These are a reasonable size