Southern
OLD
Unseasonable species settle BRISBANE
Gordon Macdonald masterbaitertackle@hotmail.com
As conditions begin to cool on approach to the winter months, we will see a gradual change in the prominence of some species throughout the Moreton Bay region. Many species have been somewhat unseasonal of late, possibly due to varied and often erratic weather patterns. The Moreton Bay pelagics have been a little quiet over a good portion of the summer months but the action has been rather good of late. Most demersal species have been steady with anglers regularly getting amongst the snapper, sweetlip, tuskfish,
whiting, flathead, bream, cod, mulloway and other species in Moreton Bay waters. Let’s see what your best options are likely to be over the coming months. MACKEREL Numbers of mackerel were somewhat lesser over the warmer months than we are commonly used to but there were decent numbers around at times. School mackerel were the most prominent however a few spotties were also caught. Although I didn’t hear of any anglers locating the large, surface-busting conglomerations of spotties, the occasional fish was found cruising the surface or feeding along with schools of bonito. The best I did was two in the one session, both fish
spotted cruising just under the surface on a glassy calm day. A cast in their general direction with a chromed slug quickly got their attention. I heard reports of others scoring the occasional spottie around the fringes of the bay islands and the artificial reefs, however in general their numbers were limited. School mackerel stocks were better, although lesser than previous seasons. Murky, often green, water in the western side of the bay definitely had something to do with this. As the water quality improved over February and March, mackerel numbers also improved. School mackerel began being caught in the Wellington Point to Ormiston area, Small Ships Channel,
A quality mangrove jack caught from the north side of Brisbane.
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24 APRIL 2023
Harry Atkinson Artificial Reef, around the bay islands, Rous Channel and many other spots. Cooling water temperatures can often improve mackerel numbers for a short period but as we really come into the cold months the numbers will begin to wane. During April anglers should try drifting gang hook rigged pilchards or trolling spoons behind paravanes along the edges of the major channels on the start of the run in tide and the first few hours of the run out tide. Pilchards drifted aft around the edges of the bay islands, the artificial reefs and the Sand Hills area will likely reward. Whilst we are historically on the back half of the season, nothing has been consistent of late therefore we may see a late run of mackerel over the coming months. Let’s hope so anyway! TUNA Towards mid-February, numbers of longtails began to appear throughout Moreton Bay. Unfortunately, the better numbers were often found just east of the Spit Beacon area which is in the Paddock Green Zone. Occasional bust-ups of feeding fish were located towards the Harry Atkinson, Middle Bank, Shipping Channel (especially between Four Beacons and Comboyuro), Measured Mile and Rainbow Channel. At times they were easy to approach and would eat almost anything you threw in their direction and at other times were downright frustrating. Good options included chromed slugs, stickbaits to around 120mm, weighted casting minnows, jighead rigged jerk shads (especially 5” ZMan Jerk shads in bubblegum) and baitfish profiled flies. The longtails were often feeding hard and erratically and you had to be lucky to be Johnny-on-the-spot when they sounded. Getting ahead of the feeding fish and cutting the motor was a good ploy at times but their movements were often hard to predict. There were plenty of quality fish amongst them with specimens over 20kg popping up. Fish of this quality will give you a hell of a fight on the usual 10kg tackle that many anglers use for this pursuit. A heavier stickbait outfit around 20kg is a better option, especially if you want to release these larger fish. Light tackle will result in these fish being totally exhausted by the time they are boatside and they will likely die by the time they are unhooked and set free. Additionally, there is a much greater chance that the sharks will find them before you can land them and we all know how that scenario ends. Longtail numbers can be great as we go into the cooler periods and anglers should have good
Tyler Wessels recently caught this great flathead while fishing with Poppy Ray. opportunity to secure a few over the coming months. SQUID Already at the time of writing, anglers were beginning to notice better numbers of squid throughout many areas of Moreton Bay. Squid like crystal clear water and when you find this around areas of weed beds, reef, rock, rubble or other structure there is a great chance that a few squid will be lurking. They often appear to materialise out of nowhere as their camouflage skills are extraordinary. They will lurk in such areas awaiting any passing morsel. The discoloured edges and weed areas in the upper reaches of the Rous and Rainbow Channels are often a good location to probe with egi, especially during the latter half of the falling tide. The edges of the reef at Peel (beware of Green Zone restrictions) and the shallows of Mud and Green also offer great opportunity when water quality is suitable. Casting egi (prawn profiled squid jigs) is the most commonly used technique for probing these areas. Common technique involves long casts over the area before retrieving. A slow retrieve with occasional pauses or abrupt hops of the jig and longer pauses, to allow the egi to sink, create good opportunity. Light drag settings will eliminate the chance of tearing the spikes on the rear of the jig out of the cephalopod. Just keep the rod tip high and keep the pressure on by constantly winding the handle of the reel (without pumping and winding as you would with a fish). Netting the squid once boatside will reduce the chances of you receiving an
inky blast. Both tiger and arrow squid can be caught with the tigers more common around structure and the arrows in the channels. Both are tasty when lightly cooked on very high heat for a short period. PRAWNS Prawning was slow throughout much of the summer months although better numbers began to appear after the full moon in February. Numbers should be good during April although they are fickle creatures that come and go at will. During April I would suggest trying the deeper holes in the Caboolture and Pine Rivers. The Brisbane River can also prawn well at this time, especially after a bit of rain. How long the prawns stay in the lower reaches of the river systems is anyone’s guess but before long they will move out into the bay. Areas around Shorncliffe, Deception Bay, Sandgate and Nudgee can all fire at this time of the year but only time will tell if this happens. However, now is the time to ensure that your cast net is in good repair and you are ready to roll when they come on. The occasional prospecting trip to likely areas is often worthwhile around the changes of the tide. Even the southern bay locales such as The Saltworks, Giant’s Grave, Jackson’s Hole and the powerlines area can pay dividends, although these usually fire a little later. A top pocket only, 12ft drop castnet is the best option for prawning. There are plenty of quality, locally made castnets on the market as well as commercially made product. I have been using a Pro Throw net for many seasons now and they are great value and a much better quality mesh than most of the
