Legalities of useing small poddy mullet as live bait

[MudRiverDan]

I was looking up poddy mullet on the NSW and QLD Fisheries sites, and here is what I have found.

The NSW website states:

http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/fisheries/recreational/saltwater/sw-species/poddy-mullet

"The term "poddy" refers to the juvenile of a particular species. Poddy mullet are very popular with anglers for use as live bait, especially in estuaries and around river mouths for flathead and off the beach when targeting tailor and mulloway/jewfish. However, it is difficult to identify the various species of mullet, particularly when they are juveniles. As a result anglers may take any species of mullet, for use as live bait only, provided they are less than 15cm and the total number does not exceed 20."

The QLD website states nothing about species ID and refers to sea mullet as poddy mullet, which if you go by the NSW definition is any juvenile mullet:

http://www.daff.qld.gov.au/28_14922.htm

In the size limits in QLD it refers only to diamond scale and sea mullet, which by their definition can go by the name of poddy mullet.

http://www.daff.qld.gov.au/28_14922.htm

QLD size limit on mullet - 30cm.

So how does this ambiguity in QLD fare when you get pulled up with a dozen or so live poddys in the bucket or bait tank in QLD?

Dan

[netmaker]

just make sure they are not diamond scales or sea mullet and you will have no problems.

[Triple]

I have asked in other threads and emailed daff and still no clear response as all the creeks around me are chockas with small mullet, How do you easily ID a juvenile sea mullet compared to other local species?

[MudRiverDan]

I have asked in other threads and emailed daff and still no clear response as all the creeks around me are chockas with small mullet, How do you easily ID a juvenile sea mullet compared to other local species?

Diamond scale look different, but "sea mullet"?

Well they are not easily identified, and that is why NSW Fisheries has an alleviation on the law for those that use them as bait, 20 undersize mullet are allowed (less than 15cm).
Which seems reasonable to me because when they are good bait there is usually huge schools of them everywhere.

Other than that, if they are not easily identified I think they must look pretty much the same.

Dan

[Triple]

So because daff QLD cannot easily id or clarify for the average fisho what species is what then all the juvenile ones I catch are sand mullet... ;)

quote from nsw regs -
"The head of the sea (bully) mullet is very broad when viewed from above, but narrowed when viewed from the side. The back of these mullet may vary in colour from steely blue, olive green to brown, while the belly is a bright silvery white colour and the body is fat and cylindrical. The sand mullet is a much more streamlined fish with a more pointed, narrower head and smaller eyes. A small, dark blotch is evident at the base of its pectoral fins and the fish is much more silver overall."

They really need an above photo of all mullet species to compare head shape, adult and juvenile.

[Si]

I think they are mostly fantail mullet or yellow eye with no legal size.

[MudRiverDan]

Yes the regulation is pretty harsh considering the massive amount of mullet that appear on rivers and beaches, yet to take a few for bait may be considered breaking the law.
From my experience sand mullet are around but a bit elusive when you try to catch them.

I was down near Kingscliff wall last Friday night and was on the beach and was amazed to see hundreds of mullet hitting my feet as the wash went out, I could have bent down and flicked a few out, sand mullet or sea mullet?
I just think they should introduce the 20 limit up here too, would be better as they are commonly used for bait, though in general they are not used for bait all the time.

Dan

[Feral]

Most mullet people call poddies and use for bait are sea mullet and have a minimum size of 30cm.
The mullet with no size limits are not indigenous to SE Qld.

In NSW you are allowed a small number of certain species undersize for bait, sea mullet being one of them.

[Triple]

Anyone know which ones of these australian mullet are also found in creeks and rivers of seq?

Bluespot (Valamugil seheli),
Bluetail (Valamugil buchanani),
Broadmouth (Paramugil parmatus),
Broussonnet's (Mugil broussonnetii) often confused with Sea Mullet,
Diamond (Liza alata), Fantail (Paramugil georgii),
Fringelip (Crenimugil heterocheilos),
Goldspot (Liza argentea),
Greenback (Liza subviridis),
Hornlip (Oedalechilus labiosus),
Kanda (Valamugil engeli),
Otomebora (Liza melinoptera),
Pinkeye (Trachystoma petardi),
Popeye (Rhinomugil nasutus),
Rock (Liza tade),
Roundhead (Valamugil cunnesius),
Sand (Myxus elongates),
Spiegler's (Valamugil speigleri),
Wartylip (Crenimugil crenilabis).

[Si]

[QUOTE=Triple;1457278]Anyone know which ones of these australian mullet are also found in creeks and rivers of seq?

I'm not going to go into all those but i thought that Paramugil georgii are found along the entire QLD, most of NSW, NT, PNG and asia. These are the mullets are commonly used as live bait and are caught in cast nets up in the creeks. Mullet can be quite hard to dintinguish between species especially when they are young.

simliar thread below

http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/showthread.php?167362-Live-poddy-mullet-legal-or-not