Bass migration

[Member]

We all know that AUstralian Bass need to go down into salt or brackish water in order to spawn, but it seems to me that not all of them go every year and some fish never go but stay as resident fish far up the river system they live in. Here on the Northern Rivers of NSW there are Bass that live a long way up the Clarence and Richmond rivers, so far in fact that many live their whole lives without ever going down to the salt. In other cases, NSW Fisheries believe that there may be two spawnings in a 12 month period. In this case, would it not be reasonable to allow fishing during the "closed" season in waters above tidal influence?
JD

[Member]

In NSW you can fish for bass any time of the year, you just cant keep them in closed season.

As for being allowed to target fish not on a breeding run, no it wouldn't make a difference, but how to write that in legislation would be the interesting bit. Might have to go down to specific water way descriptions to make it happen.

[Member]

How do they know that some bass never go down to breed.

Dino

[Member]

Dino,
Fisheries NSW have been doing a fair bit of research on the Bass lately in particular along the Clarence and Richmond. They have found that not all Bass go down to breed, particularly those high up in bigger rivers like the two mentioned. While you can certainly target Bass during the "closed" season many fisho's would rather leave them along as they are very vulnerable at that time. They have also found that there may be more than one breeding, and that significant numbers stay down river longer. This year there were fewer larger Bass further up the rivers, the larger fish being the females, it is thought that many stayed down getting ready to spawn again. Without taking the moral high ground here, I would rather target Bass well up the rivers so I know there is no danger of coitus interruptus. The Bass have now moved well up into both rivers in the case of the Clarence well above Tabulam.
JD 

[Member]

Awhile back I asked NSW fisheries the question, do bass change sex as they get older, as I had heard from some people that they do and some that they dont. They asked thier head research scientist Dr Stewart Fielder who told them some fish change sex as they grow older but bass was not one of them Dr Julian Pepperal when asked by me gave the same answer that there was no proof to back this up.

Dino

[Member]

I heard recently of mid 40 cm Bass being caught right up the top end of the Clarence system at Rivertree, that would be a huge swim for any fish.

Cheers Andrew

[Member]

I was of the belief that only a fraction of the population ever travel down to breed at any given season. Not like a mass exodus or anything.

[Member]

And then there is the opposite situation where we now have Bass that have spent the whole year in the brackish/salt due to being unable to migrate upstream or find adequate food in the short overpopulated  stretch of stream available.

[Member]

I heard recently of mid 40 cm Bass being caught right up the top end of the Clarence system at Rivertree, that would be a huge swim for any fish.

Cheers Andrew

You're right Andrew, there are good fish all the way up there and the thinking is that they are resident. The people who run Clarence River Wilderness Lodge further downstream tell me they have fish there all year 'round. They take guests out in canoes to show them Platypus, and invariably there are Bass there as well. They had a big Eastern Cod up there about 4 ft long but have not seen her for a while. I'm sure that only a percentage of Bass ever go down to the salt.
John

[Member]

This was the point I was making earlier, unless they tagged the bass and recaptured them each year they would never know.

Dino

[Member]

You're right there Dino, so we basically have to rely on what people have seen and captures made, then toss in a bit of supposition. The longer I fish for Bass in creeks and rivers, the more I realise how little we really know about them.
John