dolphins close to shore, the whiting must be running

[bob10]

Just saw a pod of Indopacific Humpback Dolphins [ identified from my 'Wild guide to Moreton Bay'] cruising close in. When I first shifted here, an old Italian gentleman, Angelo Denaro, was regarded as the local fishing guru, what he didn't know about fishing the area wasn't worth knowing. One thing he told me was when you see the dolphins in close, this time of year, the whiting are running. Going to dust off the worming fork [ he told me where to dig wrigglers, too ;)] and get amongst it. Angelo used to walk in the swimming enclosure at Shorncliffe at night and net as many prawns as he could carry. He also told me he could stand on the headland at Shorncliffe and watch thousands of sand crabs walking in the shallow water, the good old days, Bob

[sheerluck]

That's a sight that you could never get tired of, Bob.

[vnx205]

Walking up the beach yesterday, I reckon I came very close to breaching the 300 metre exclusion zone around a whale with her calf.

I have never seen one so close to shore before. It looked like about 100 metres, so given how hard it is to judge distances across water, it was probably really about 300 or 400 metres.

I have been closer than that in a kayak, but I never expected to be that close standing on the beach.

[Chenz]

All of the high tech water temperature satellites and current and tide monitors give good information about fish habits and migrations but good old fashioned observations by professional fisherman such as the one your mate gave you are more than usually a far more predicable and accurate tip of what is where and when.

My grandfather was a pro-fisho for a while and while others were launching their boats to go out for a fish he would wrinkle up his nose and say "They are not on today" A check at the ramp that afternoon usually confirmed he was right.

When he said lets go fishing, you knew we were going to get a feed.

As for the whales, while being magnificent creatures, they are not as smart as what some people say and have been known to bump into boats drifting along fishing. I have had a number of them come up very close under the boat and others that have breached right next to the boat so close that the splash wet us.

We were not looking for them or chasing them they just appeared. Caution around these huge creatures is well advised. The thought of 6 tonnes plus of whale landing on you is not one I want to contemplate

[Chucaro]

I would love to be in WA to see this :cool::

Hydroplaning Dolphins (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6yzpe8r4xg)

[Vern]

Mmmmmm whiting, yummy (particularly king George):D

[bob10]

Mmmmmm whiting, yummy (particularly king George):D

On the bucket list is the trip to Sth. Aus. to catch some of those, & to scoop up some sand crabs, & get on the wine, Bob

[Vern]

Oh yeah bob, the eastern side of the Eyre peninsula, blue swimmer crab and king George whiting territory. And a brilliant place for a holiday (whole Eyre peninsula that is).
But pack plenty of fishing gear:)

[bob10]

Oh yeah bob, the eastern side of the Eyre peninsula, blue swimmer crab and king George whiting territory. And a brilliant place for a holiday (whole Eyre peninsula that is).
But pack plenty of fishing gear:)

Can't wait!, Bob

[Roverlord off road spares]

Mmmmmm whiting, yummy (particularly king George):D
The King George are a southern species, further north they get sand whiting.
I fished Morton bay when I visited a mate in Wynnum, the dolphin were at the mouth of the Brisbane river.
Fishing from a boat in the bay produced Grinners, ( sort of like a whiting but with big mouths and sharp teeth , Flounder with big TEETH :o and some funny looking caterpillar worm type thing that swallow the bait and their body was full of hair like spines all over:o
I don't know if there is illegal dumping of waste into the bay but these things were creepy

[Roverlord off road spares]

On the bucket list is the trip to Sth. Aus. to catch some of those, & to scoop up some sand crabs, & get on the wine, Bob
I fished the surf at Robe, without steel toed boots and those hidden sand crabs certainly took a fancy to my big toe.

[bob10]

The King George are a southern species, further north they get sand whiting.
I fished Morton bay when I visited a mate in Wynnum, the dolphin were at the mouth of the Brisbane river.
Fishing from a boat in the bay produced Grinners, ( sort of like a whiting but with big mouths and sharp teeth , Flounder with big TEETH :o and some funny looking caterpillar worm type thing that swallow the bait and their body was full of hair like spines all over:o
I don't know if there is illegal dumping of waste into the bay but these things were creepy

Yep, grinners, rats of the sea,
Harpadonidae

Small, bottom dwelling ; mainly on silty or sandy substrate. Numerous rows of needle like teeth in jaws, conspicuously visible from outside of mouth. Large numbers often caught by trawlers, but also taken by anglers in deeper , sandy grounds. Considered a delicacy in India. [ enough said]

large toothed flounder
To 40 cm., bottom dwelling, on soft bottoms, from shallow estuaries to more than 500 m depth, flattened head & body, eyes on left side of body. Excellent eating.

what a pity you couldn't get amongst the Mangrove Jack, Snapper, Jew, Sweetlip, Emperors, Kingfish, trevallies, Tailor, Coral trout, 3 species of Flathead, Bream, Pearl perch, Queenfish, Amberjack, Moses perch, Rosy Jobfish, Drummer, Morwong, Sole , Leather jacket , & more, that live in Moreton Bay, & the river systems around here. It's not well known , but there are coral reefs in the bay, not much, but enough. You have to know where they are, & I'm not telling. Also we have 2 whiting species, Sand & Diver, or winter whiting. Tiny by comparison to their southern cousins, winter whiting are the sweetest fish you could eat. You have to know how to butterfly fillet the fish, or you lose the best part of it.

That worm thing is most likely the Purple spotted bristle worm, Occasionally caught on prawn & fish baits, the bristles can break off in the skin, & cause irritation.

From my wild guide to Moreton Bay, BTW, I have caught & eaten all of the fish above. My favourites, Winter whiting, flathead & coral Trout, Bob

[Vern]

My favourites to eat as well bob, although I'd substitute winter whiting for king George as I'm not aware of the winter variety. Oh and calamari:). Yummy

[Roverlord off road spares]

Yep, grinners, rats of the sea,
Harpadonidae

Small, bottom dwelling ; mainly on silty or sandy substrate. Numerous rows of needle like teeth in jaws, conspicuously visible from outside of mouth. Large numbers often caught by trawlers, but also taken by anglers in deeper , sandy grounds. Considered a delicacy in India. [ enough said]

large toothed flounder
To 40 cm., bottom dwelling, on soft bottoms, from shallow estuaries to more than 500 m depth, flattened head & body, eyes on left side of body. Excellent eating.

what a pity you couldn't get amongst the Mangrove Jack, Snapper, Jew, Sweetlip, Emperors, Kingfish, trevallies, Tailor, Coral trout, 3 species of Flathead, Bream, Pearl perch, Queenfish, Amberjack, Moses perch, Rosy Jobfish, Drummer, Morwong, Sole , Leather jacket , & more, that live in Moreton Bay, & the river systems around here. It's not well known , but there are coral reefs in the bay, not much, but enough. You have to know where they are, & I'm not telling. Also we have 2 whiting species, Sand & Diver, or winter whiting. Tiny by comparison to their southern cousins, winter whiting are the sweetest fish you could eat. You have to know how to butterfly fillet the fish, or you lose the best part of it.

That worm thing is most likely the Purple spotted bristle worm, Occasionally caught on prawn & fish baits, the bristles can break off in the skin, & cause irritation.

From my wild guide to Moreton Bay, BTW, I have caught & eaten all of the fish above. My favourites, Winter whiting, flathead & coral Trout, Bob
Thanks Bob, now I know what those purple worm things are, tried to google but come up zippo. Mate lived in Wynnum so launched at Manly, we only fished the bay and headed for this Island not far off shore. The water was pretty clear and you could see the bottom, there was just sand/silt and sea grass in patches. A lot of boats were heading out wide, but we were in a small tinny. Possible at those better fish where further off shore?
Cheers, Mario

[bob10]

Thanks Bob, now I know what those purple worm things are, tried to google but come up zippo. Mate lived in Wynnum so launched at Manly, we only fished the bay and headed for this Island not far off shore. The water was pretty clear and you could see the bottom, there was just sand/silt and sea grass in patches. A lot of boats were heading out wide, but we were in a small tinny. Possible at those better fish where further off shore?
Cheers, Mario

The best fishing around the Bay islands is at night, you can catch snapper & the occasional reef fish as close as Mud Island, off the mouth of the River. They are very touchy, no lights, no noise. Snapper are also caught in the River, sneak in under the wharf around fishermans islands [ don't get caught] again at night. The flats off Nudgee beach were great for winter whiting, fishing with a handline & 2 or 3 hooks, you'd get 3 at a time. unfortunately, much of Nudgee is Green zone, Marine National Park. Any one fishing Moreton Bay should get a copy of the " Moreton Bay Marine Park user guide", tells you where you can & can't fish. Another must have is Brownies Coastwatch " Beacon to Beacon" directory. It shows updated maps, GPS waypoints, anchorage guide, anchorage photos from Bundaberg to Tweed heads. Full of great info. Another little tip, buy an Admiralty Chart of Moreton Bay, which shows all wrecks in & around the Bay. [ Not telling you any more :D] Bob

[bob10]

My favourites to eat as well bob, although I'd substitute winter whiting for king George as I'm not aware of the winter variety. Oh and calamari:). Yummy

Can't wait to get amongst the King George whiting, when the Wife retires, Coffin Bay oysters, yummie!. The best local place for calamari is Shorncliffe pier, at night. Or it was, until they closed the pier, for safety reasons, good news is they are rebuilding it, it is an icon in these parts, Bob

[Vern]

When your heading the the Eyre, tumby bay area has huge king George whiting, there is some great places to stop over there, especially memory cove at Lincoln national park, I was catching salmon, mullet, flat head, whiting, and squid off the beach. The parks are great, I'd love to go back, but have to go and try the seafood in tassie next:)