Releasing Female Dhuies in summer
Submitted by Wazo on Thu, 2009-01-08 17:33
Here's a tin of worms... As a rule I've always released females between November and Feb whenever I caught them on The Bank(spawning ground.)
I have to admit that it's been hard, but for the greater good I think it's just smarter.
Don't get me wrong.. I fish for bags and as a rule i don't hug trees, but in this case I lean on the green side.
What do you think Lads???
And have you got the gut's to follow suit??
...and then the fight started
brenz
Posts: 2182
Date Joined: 15/06/06
i think that is a fair call
i think that is a fair call mate but id like to see what comments will arise from this 1. .... should be interesting
proud user of xzoga rods
Adam Gallash
Posts: 15652
Date Joined: 29/11/05
No reason why not to
Each to their own really. Theres nothing stopping people from releasing them and in my mind, any fish that can be released, gives the angler the satisfaction of doing so and results ultimately in a win-win situation for both parties. :)
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johno
Posts: 468
Date Joined: 20/07/08
Totally Agree
I also believe in release, and only take what you really need and want, I also agree this is a fair call. I like to add if you are good at fishing and go fishing often why have a freezer full? no sense unless you are keeping it for some reason??, remember our actions will reflect on our future.
Johno
Cockburn Power Boat Member (CPBA)
PGFC
jersey
Posts: 393
Date Joined: 12/06/08
I owe you
Wazo,a person like you who recognize the dire situation of our V5 and is prepared to let go a female as it may breed is commendable,I would buy you a beer any time, congratulations on a truly
fishing for the future attitude,regards jersey
wrassinator
Posts: 554
Date Joined: 26/11/08
Hey Wazo - I second Jersey's
Hey Wazo - I second Jersey's comments mate. Good freakin on you. If only more crew had this ethic then how much better off would we all be? Half of the fun is the anticipation, planning, watching weather, travelling, talking shite to mates, rigging, baiting...dropping....drifting...waiting...waiting.....
You know the rest far better than I obviously as not had the luxury of getting out too deep as prety new to this, and boat only 15ft. I got a buzz from releasing half a doz smidgen under tailor last night so a nice mature, female, ripe to spawn dhu must be something altogher more rewarding.
Keep it up mate and perhaps, just maybe future generations can experience the PRIVELIDGE we do....
Cheers,
Ado
roberta
Posts: 2773
Date Joined: 08/07/08
Totally agree fellas, good comments
SPEWIE LEWIE
Cockburn Power Boat Member
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Wazo
Posts: 84
Date Joined: 12/06/08
Come on up Wrasse
If you ever want a day out Wrasse, just P.M me(cant this weekend).
As far as it goes, this is a site for GOOD fishermen .
If we're that good , why take a female knowing she's almost certainly full of eggs.
I see kill shots of females and you can tell when they're holding.
All of us feel good about throwing back crays holding eggs, yet we keep Dhuies who are in much deeper trouble.
Theres ALWAYS another fish to catch.
I'd like to see all of Fishwrecked members do the same thing . JMO
feral1975
Posts: 638
Date Joined: 22/02/07
wazo for president I
wazo for president
I wish I had an emo lawn so it would cut it self
Ryan Thipthorp (not verified)
Posts: 16
Date Joined: 01/01/70
my take!
Spawning occurs from December to late March with the peak period being January to March!
*If a "big" female Dhufish comes up i'd rather put that one back that's for sure. The ratio of big females is low and they're big breeders. I prefer to keep smaller male or female Dhufish as they're better on the tooth anyway imo!
I prefer my crew to keep anyfish Dhufish (legal size plus) if there's barotrauma issues and the baglimits are maintained over releasing a barotrauma female Dhufish to just keep on fishing for that species!
*Breeding Female, no barotrauma, released!
* Oceanside- Advice, Knowledge, Experience....that's our difference *
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HuggyB
Posts: 2515
Date Joined: 03/08/08
I dont catch enough dhuies
to be face with such a dilema. But I never take female crabs, I wont take any obviously egg carrying trout so i guess that would probably extend to a spawning female dhuie.
But since I have only caught 2 size male dhuies around the 6kg mark each, its not been something thats confronted me yet.
The Terrorist - coming to a fishing spot near you.........
Wazo
Posts: 84
Date Joined: 12/06/08
barotrauma
Hey Flipflop. Anything with any stress is kept, but I always get my deckies to drag their fish slow. Especially small ones. That way any Dhuie can be released.
Obviously the very good fishermen and woman on this site release but for someone who catches a few every season it's prettyb hard to let go of a good fish.
After march we catch the most fish anyway, be good to give more of a chance at the right toime!
Brock O
Posts: 3250
Date Joined: 11/01/08
Male? Female?
It sounds like u and a few others no were and how to catch these great fish,To release a female at this time of year is smart and shows u know the state of the V5.This maybe a silly question for some but can some one tell me quickly how to identify the difference between male/female dhuie or any fish in general.
HuggyB
Posts: 2515
Date Joined: 03/08/08
Brock
The males have a mohawk like spine on their dorsal fin and the female dhuies don't (as per the attached pic -
The Terrorist - coming to a fishing spot near you.........
eddie
Posts: 303
Date Joined: 07/02/08
I can't wait to catch my
I can't wait to catch my first dhuie!!!
kaneo
Posts: 340
Date Joined: 09/01/08
haha
haha
Paul G
Posts: 5215
Date Joined: 12/12/07
Yes sounds like a great plan
Yes sounds like a great plan for the future fish stocks,I just wonder if the females could misscarry as such ,and lose there eggs due to catch and release, there is still plenty of people who say 50% of fish or more die when released, I for one do release plenty of fish as most on the forums know.Good call Waso i think getting the fish to the surface in good condition is half the battle, as there are still a large number of fisho's who still scull drag there fish ,then there is no release .It is great to see people trying to do the right thing ,and in time it will rub of on to others .I do think forums like this have a effect on people ,who read these topics and people start to make changes to there stile of fishing and there attitude to fishing ..happy fishing.
Active Gyp-Rok solutions ,Residential and commercial ceilings and walls
saltatrix
Posts: 1081
Date Joined: 30/03/08
The deeper the water the
The deeper the water the greater chance of Barotrauma.
The slower the retrieve the better.
How many times have you heard of people dropping fish that have been hooked on the outside of the mouth or loosely hooked because they went hard?
That bag of cement in deep water is a tell tale sign of too quick off the bottom.
Taking it easy you have more chance of keeping the fish on in deeper water and a greater chance of survival.
That first 15 feet in deep water appears critical. The fisherman panic zone.
If there is no signs of barotrauma then getting the fish repressurised makes dramatic difference. If they were on the bottom thats where they will be comfortable as soon as possible.
The release weight plays that part. Its not to say without there is no chance of survival but it increases the chance by a lot. Back down the bottom the water pressure repressurises the swim bladder. Back there the sooner the better.
Eye damage maybe a different story but indication they were wound up too fast.
If they havent spilled their eggs or milt there is nothing to say they wont go on to spawn.
Theyre not a fish that rebounds in population fast at all. Decades in fact.
Its what worries scientists and provokes some of their cautionary measures.
Dhufish dont spawn every year and there is very few highly successful years.
The lower the population the less chance of good recruitment. There may appear to be loads of fish especially fishermen fishing concentrated spawning aggregations of fish not just Dhufish. The population can appear great. loads of fish with fisheries until a critical biomass crash occurs. A succession of years with the lack of the right enviromental conditions. Its a bit late then.
A good Dhufish recruitment year is like the planets lining up. It takes all the right conditions for it to happen. A decade of poor recruitment int he future could be disasterious.
Between barotrauma susceptibility and spawning criteria it makes them very susceptible to collapse. More so than many other species.
If you have undersized, too many or are concerned enough to give Dhufish a future releasing females in the period its worth the effort. You can only gain by using the best current known methods and knowledge.
Plenty of you would know this, plenty read it a thousand times. Some tired of hearing it.
For the ones that may not know all the facts and are interested it may have been worth the read;
If you want Dhufish to have a future "go slow" then go "slower" on the retrieve.
Angling tourism is worth $10 billion to the Australian economy - 90000 jobs; more than any sport; spread the word
Bodie
Posts: 3758
Date Joined: 05/11/07
Do dhus only breed during
Do dhus only breed during Jan - March?
Is there a way to tell a female with eggs and one without?
Just a thought as people may catch them later in the year and they may have eggs...but not know it.
Agreed on slow retrieve on fish. No point ripping a fish up to find out its a female full of eggs, or under sized.
I too dont take female crabs, and have released probably 150+ crays with tar or eggs. With us getting our cray bag limits on trips, or close too... usually it's only males that are taken.
I like the fishing ediquite most forum members have on here with there methods of catching and releasing fish. I know i have taken much info into consideration over the last year from here. Im sure many more will as well. Go way to do our part to help teach and support fishing for the future.
Good work Wazo, agreed on your methods aswell.
wrassinator
Posts: 554
Date Joined: 26/11/08
Cheers Wazo. Would be up for
Cheers Wazo. Would be up for a wide trip for sure some day. Would even avoid skull draggin female dhus, should I be lucky enough to hook one.
Good thread by the way.
Ado
saltatrix
Posts: 1081
Date Joined: 30/03/08
The Male VS Female debate is
The Male VS Female debate is a funny one. Theres plenty of rumours going around that the biggest aggressive male picks his spot with smaller males lingering for a title opportunity and the females join the fellow whos going to supply the highest chance of successful recruitment. Once the big dominant male is yanked from his domain the conjoining females disperse potentially ruining a good pyjama party.
Over exploitation of one vicinity can wipe out a population in that area for a long period of time. Bad old serial depletion.
Even if the pyjama party is pulled off theres water temperature, current direction and a host of other variables that make for that one year in many that can provide a recruitment to gain the population a little.
Theres a bunch of variables that make the susceptibility vary scary.
Its why taking care in capture, handling and release of small ones and big ones makes a big difference.
The more fishermen understand about the susceptible components of this particular species the more they grow concerned about giving them the best possible future.
Fisheries management strategies arent based on the smaller percentage of fishermen who care and make and effort. Management strategies arent built on the wider community that dont know or even worse the ones full of ignorance.
Its why the more the broader fishing community understands the fish's habits and susceptibility the better.
Why the higher the uptake of a better survival attitude and culture the better.
Do you now understand more so than many other species how susceptible the Dhufish species is?
Do you understand the importance of why best capture and release practice can make a difference more so to this species than many others?
Now you may know something a little more about the Dhufish species do you care that little bit extra about how special that catch you just made is?
Angling tourism is worth $10 billion to the Australian economy - 90000 jobs; more than any sport; spread the word
saltatrix
Posts: 1081
Date Joined: 30/03/08
I think they dont actually
I think they dont actually start breeding till about 550, 600mm +
Hence size limits and the opportunity to breed maybe once.
Big fish equals more eggs more milt, bigger fish genes.
Thats why they matter too.
They appear to suffer greater incident of Barotrauma.
It makes you think doesnt it.
Angling tourism is worth $10 billion to the Australian economy - 90000 jobs; more than any sport; spread the word
wrassinator
Posts: 554
Date Joined: 26/11/08
Sure does Dr
Sure does Dr Saltatrix. V.informative read. Cheers mate, keep it up
saltatrix
Posts: 1081
Date Joined: 30/03/08
So you have a wonderful
So you have a wonderful spawning session, everything was right
Crap loads of tiny Rotifer are born
Then incomes the southern current, she spins one way they are safe, shes spins the other way, off the shelf, all gone! It makes baby jebus cry.
Its a variable in the miracle of high recruitment of the particular species.
I have personal opinion of max 2 or 3 Dhufish per boat landed inside the metro non-commercial zone. Probably because the aggregation can be often only be 6 fish down to pairs if theres not enough in the particular territory to congregate for the spawn period. Even if that ruling is inside the january to March period.
Im not going to turn into the Arabian swearing bear if people have a different opinion. We all have different opinions.
You can see why some are concerned for the Dhufish's future welfare.
Its why critical extraction numbers are so important for the metro zone. Both personal and gross amounts.
Do I like catching them? Bloody oath! Do I catch and eat em? fuck yeah!
You can see in this current how a great recruitment of Rotifer can be so awesome only to be swirled off the shelf like Dodo birds of the water.
Thats the Northern but the southern maybe more critical.
Swim Nemo Swim!
Bein a mushroom sucks, understanding a little bit more instills respect.
Do I mind people holding up captures? No, Luv ya work!
Do pictures of big numbers of Dhufish on one boat worry me? In the past, no, now, a little more than the past. You can see why.
Upgraders will be upgraders maybe because they dont understand, nothings perfect
Its their conscience more so now they mayknow the ramifications of their decisions.
Angling tourism is worth $10 billion to the Australian economy - 90000 jobs; more than any sport; spread the word
roberta
Posts: 2773
Date Joined: 08/07/08
They almost look prehistoric at the beginning A/B photo
still a beautifull looking fish, Bob's caught a female with roe, but didn't know till he started gill & gut. He felt terrible, caught December 07, nothing since mainly males also caught baldies the same time with roe.
SPEWIE LEWIE
Cockburn Power Boat Member
Ginger Tablets Rock
harro
Posts: 1959
Date Joined: 07/02/08
eggs
unfortunately we had a female with eggs, to be totally honest we didnt know at the time ,as it was mayham , with cple of the guys first timers fishing from a boat,
when we got home we realized, and yes it did very much piss me off
have made rules now onboard our boat not to keep female dhuies this time of year.
late nov-march .
:::: Bass Hunter ::::
wrassinator
Posts: 554
Date Joined: 26/11/08
I'm voting Saltatrix pics an
I'm voting Saltatrix pics an infor of the month. Big effort there mate