Fish Report - 18th February 2010

The rains in the Bundaberg area over the recent weeks, have certainly put a damper on wetting a line.  With all the local estuarine systems running fresh, this has made it very difficult to snag a creel full of fish.
 
But, there are encouraging signs with large bream being captured in the Burnett River, as well as the occassional salmon.  The bream have been mainly in the top end of the river with the salmon in the deeper holes in the mid reaches.
 
Flathead and whiting have also been caught recently near the mouth of Skyringville where the water is more salty.  With the creeks being flushed out, there are plenty of mud crabs and prawns around. 
 
The mackeral that were around the close inshore reefs have now moved further out into the cleaner water, where large spanish are still being caught on the outer reefs.  Red emperor, coral trout and sweetlip are other species being reported on the outer reefs.
 
Lake Monduran has risen substantially and at time of writing was at 40% capacity.  With the large increase of freshwater, my advice would be to troll in the main basin with lures that dive 15-20 feet.  Because the barra will be trying to get to the salt water, they will travel with the flow to the dam wall, so this would be the area to target.  The other option is, the barra will head up into the shallow waters to feed on the fresh ground that has been newly covered by the rising water, as this provides a new food source for them.
 
With the amount of rain we have had this year, the signs are excellent for a bumper fishing season over the next few months.
 
Take a Kid Fishing Day:  This Queensland-wide event will be held this year on Sunday, 14th March 2010.  Tackle World Bundaberg will be organising the one for the Bundaberg area and it will be held at the mouth of the Elliott River from 9.00am till noon.  All kids wanting to throw in a line must pre-register at Tackle World Bundaberg before Saturday, 13th March, and must be accompanied by a parent or guardian on the day.  For more information, call Tackle World Bundaberg on 07 4153 4747.
 
Till next time,
Gary Leather
Tackle World Bundaberg