Kinchant Barra

[juicyfruit]

Last night after a quick trip to Kinchant dam we noticed dead and rotting Barra lying on the foreshore.

All these fish were over a metre long.

Surley within this wonderful age of Catch and Release and the abilility to turn just about any fish into a meal...why do ppl feel the need to do this sort of thing?????

If its boasting rights, like the fisherman that hang fish from street signs......then have they ever thought of buying a camera?????

Juicy

[thumps]

yeah >:(

[Toppy]

I couldnt agree more Juicy!
We caught & released 30 barra at Faust and only had one go pear shaped. Its a disgrace if these where left there on purpose for nothing more than glorey.
cheers
Toppy

[Richard]

Might have been an inversion of the water or they may have caught in a spot where there was low oxygen.

Hopefully it's not as you say and people just not handling the barra properly (lifting, etc). Seems such a waste when just a little care can mean a big difference to fish survival post-release.


Richard

[krazyfisher]

what are the water levels like at kinchant?

[thumps]

1 December, 2004
DPI&F monitoring Kinchant Dam

The Department Primary Industries and Fisheries is continuing to monitor water levels at Kinchant Dam near Mackay and planning to relocate barramundi from the dam if water levels reach a critical level.

While DPI&F does not normally become involved in fish salvaging operations due to natural causes such as drought, it has been working with the Mackay Area Fish Stocking Group to address the Kinchant Dam situation.

DPI&F extension officer Malcolm Pearce said while it was not possible to remove all the fish from the dam, DPI&F officers and the local stocking group had agreed that some barramundi could be relocated.

“It is impractical to try and relocate all the fish. Many would not survive the relocation operation and those that did would then be competing with other fish for food, shelter and space,” he said.

“However, barramundi are quite robust, a highly valuable recreational species and the most suited to relocation. This is a good compromise.”

Mr Pearce said if undertaken, DPI&F officers would oversee the relocation operation and work with members of the stocking group.

DPI&F will also work with Sun Water to develop contingency plans to dispose of dead fish if the dam dries up.

“No one likes to fish to die although unfortunate as it may be, this is a harsh reality when there are droughts,” he said.

[juicyfruit]

Krazyfisher,

Sorry can’t tell ya the % of water in Kinchant, will look into it, but it’s just under the (oh here comes my technical name for it) the water tower thingy-ma-bob.....about 12 meters from the picnic tables……(which tells ya nothing if ya never been there)....Can say that the blue-green algae reading is low and that fishing licences can be purchased at the resort. (yeap a fund of useless information).

Needless to say, it's down a long way (never waterskiied it that low before) but I have seen it lower.

Juicy

[juicyfruit]

44% full

[juicyfruit]

Ok have just found a site, that tells ya all the water storage levels in Qld.

Once again, not sure if I can post the link here.

IM me if ya want the link.

Juicy

[krazyfisher]

does sound too low I am sure it was less than that last time i was there. I have looked at moving fish before and it is not an easy job

[McCod]

What sort of numbers dead ?

[juicyfruit]

Yeap yeap McCod,

Valid question to work out if the Barra was a glory or as Richard mentioned {an inversion of the water or they may have caught in a spot where there was low oxygen} and Toppy mention {go pear shaped}.

Numbers I saw was 2 at the top of the boat ramp (water approx 12 metres away from water line) and 1 on the bank approx 8 meters from the wall and 5 meters from the water line. Another approx 3 meters from water line, approx halfway between boat ramp and wall.

As it was dark, these are the only ones I almost trod upon.

Hope this helps

Juicy

[devocean]

As part of my job I get to liase with guys who stock that dam plus faust. They are all for people taking the big barra out of the dam as the larger barra often consume many of the hatchlings which are pumped into the place every year. The average sized barra in Faust at the moment is an estaimated 90cm to 1 metre long fish. This shows that many of the smaller barra are not getting much of a go.

A lot of money is spent on adding fingerlings to the dams every year and many of these big barra are decimating mnay of these fingerlings. Im not saying that catching and killing all these barras is a good idea Im just bringing a new thought to the forum. Also fish kills in Kinchant are common especially with the larger fish as dam levels are very very low at the moment.

Devo

[juicyfruit]

Ah I see.

Didn't know this, so excuse my ignorance.

Is it also common practice for the removal of the larger Barra to be left on the banks?

If so, does this sort of thing encourage bad fishing habits from other fisherman that aren't part of the removal of large Barra?

Juicy

[krazyfisher]

I would think it would be a better idea to just take one home. i know that it is a good idea to remove some of the large fish to give the smaller one a go but dont waste it aleast take it for crab bait or do something with it.

[thumps]

Devocean

why isnt it possible to transfer these large fish into saltwater??? or even local waterways that have acess to saltwater.

i'm sure that someone within your area of expertise could supply the water tanker/aerator to transport these fish to other areas.

given that these fish are female and capable of producing offspring(i am assuming they arent triploid fish)...wouldnt it be in the interests of a fishing organisation to make these fish available to the rec fisherman??

why shouldnt we try and utilise this resource and use areas like Faust and Kinchant...even Eungella as grow out ponds for large breeders???

i am aware there may be problems in acclimatisation....but maybe it could be an option

[krazyfisher]

thumps
some of the problem is that there are differant types of barra as in bloodlines I cant remember but i think It is all determined by the water ways they come from and may go into. so faust barra can not go into all waterways etc and it is a very big job. I have been involved in this before and it was just not that easy. I do agree with you but there is alot involved .
if you want more answers ring mackay fish stocking assoc. or sunfish mackay they have talked about this before and will be be able to give the right answers

[thumps]

Krazy

sent an email to Mackay Sunfish 4 days ago

still no reply

and thanks for that...i forgot about bloodlines

cheers

[thumps]

just on a further note...


the post i made re the Dec 2004 press release

“It is impractical to try and relocate all the fish. Many would not survive the relocation operation and those that did would then be competing with other fish for food, shelter and space,” he said.

“However, barramundi are quite robust, a highly valuable recreational species and the most suited to relocation. This is a good compromise.”

Mr Pearce said if undertaken, DPI&F officers would oversee the relocation operation and work with members of the stocking group.

DPI&F will also work with Sun Water to develop contingency plans to dispose of dead fish if the dam dries up.

has any of this been implemented

has Sun Water actually relocated any fish???

and has SunFish been involved?

[McCod]

Relocating big barra from impoundments to salt ??? ... I don't think it will go down real well with most fishos... as this is why we go fish these dams... Most of the Barra dams are on the S.I.P system and we pay for the fish to go in the dams.... NOT THE SALT.

#Cheers Les

[krazyfisher]

thumps
try this
Sunfish Mackay Regional Branch (07) 4955 0600

[the_matrix]

Devo
The subject of large barra being reponsible for the decimation of new stock has been debated for some time espeacially on the fresh water forum on this site and also Harro's bulletin board.
I understand that these impoundments are put and take fisheries etc but I just cant fathom the reasoning behind culling trophy size barra, nor can I condone it.

I have heard the stocking groups saying that the small fish are being eaten by all the metre specimens etc etc but really how many fish are being swallowed up by their older more established brethren? I know Awoonga does not have that problem, and Tinaroo has definantly struggled to have a regular "year class" fish stocking program. This often leads to huge gaps in fish sizes (as is whats happening now at Tinaroo) and consequently the larger fish are "blamed" for the deficiency.
Regular stocking intervals (like Awoonga) are a way of avoiding these big gaps in year class fish, and if you have ever been to Awoonga, you will see the proof is in the pudding.

As far as Im concerned, if you kill a metre Barra because you think you are doing favours for the fingerlings, you've got rocks in your head. Ask yourself the question "would I travel 1000 plus klms to catch 600mm Barra, or would I travel 1000 plus klms to catch a trophy specimen upwards of a metre long. Thats why these impoundments are so speacial, because Joe Blogg's with his wife and kids in toe can rock up, have a crack at them, and catch a fish that would normally take a lifetime or more to catch in the wild. To me, thats what its about. Big fish...........No REALLY BIG fish. ;D
If there's evidence of fingerlings being eaten on a large scale, then surely a better solution is to stock the impoundment with more baitfish?Bony's, Garfish etc etc?

At the end of the day though,its a personal thing, how you see the big picture.
This impoundment scene is one that Im very passionate about, and one that I would defend to the unth degree. :D
For people who keep fish for their own reasons ie first metrey, wall mount, to eat etc, I have no problems with that. Thats why they were put there!
But to kill them for the sake of the future? To me, it just dont add up.

Thats only my opinion, Im sure everyone has their own as well. ;D
I just cant bring myself to kill these magnificent creatures.
Cheers and merry xmas all. :)
Jas ;)

[devocean]

Couldnt agree more Jas with your comments. I have been fishing all over the gulf of carpentaria weipa you name it and even there it can be difficukt to catch a metre plus barra so dam fishing is a delight especially when that is the average sized fish

Though I have heard some people say that the reason for jack populations being so low and a bit of a failure in impoundments is because of the big barra.

[the_matrix]

Devo,
Yeh mate I have heard the same thing. Its just people commenting on things when they dont have the facts. The reason why Jacks havent hit the scene big time is because of the high degree of difficulty in reproducing big numbers of fingerlings. They are much more fickle than Barra to reproduce, and have an incredibly high mortatlity rate at a very young age. Once they get past a certain age (which is VERY young, just cant remember exactly) they are fine but from what Ken Cowden from the Gladstone hatchery tells me its a fickle buisness at the moment. That will certainly change over the coming years with new found knowledge and technology.

I can only speak from Awoonga's point of view, they have released approx 14,000 Jacks over the past few years. There has only been one confirmed capture, and a dozen or so unconfirmed.
14,000 Jacks is bugger all in the scheme of things when you consider Awoonga has had over 2.25 Million Barra released since the 90's. So.....you can see why they havent come on in a big way, the Barra are just so thick. That will gradually change as the hatcherys start pumping out numbers of Jacks though. The humble metre Barra need not worry about Jack fingerlings, he's far too worried about the 20 or so Bony Bream he just inhaled in one foul swoop, as they casually swam by. ;D
The Jacks biggest concern would be Cormorants and the like, natural attrition, and just low numbers of fish.

I look forward to the day when we hear of impoundments stocked with millions of Jacks, according to the guys at the hatchery we can expect 18kg plus specimens. Imagine the revolution the tackle will need to go through to cope! By then the Barra will be 50kg plus as well!
All I know is I wont be swimming around Awoonga dam like I do now when the Jack population is higher. Bugger that! ;D
Have a good one eh?
Jas

[szopen]

Nice to see such a sensitive thread where there are more memebrs agreeing than not.


From what I can say that I have seen in Europe (different fish stocked and different conditions) every dam/habitat is just a little different from others so what works in one might not work in others.

[juicyfruit]

Bumps Devo (ahhhhh was it as good for u as it was for me)

Genuine question gone unanswered (fully understand that your post was playing devils advocate and to add a new spin on the thread)

Cheers Juicy (lights a smoke)





As part of my job I get to liase with guys who stock that dam plus faust. They are all for people taking the big barra out of the dam as the larger barra often consume many of the hatchlings which are pumped into the place every year. The average sized barra in Faust at the moment is an estaimated 90cm to 1 metre long fish. This shows that many of the smaller barra are not getting much of a go.

A lot of money is spent on adding fingerlings to the dams every year and many of these big barra are decimating mnay of these fingerlings. Im not saying that catching and killing all these barras is a good idea Im just bringing a new thought to the forum. Also fish kills in Kinchant are common especially with the larger fish as dam levels are very very low at the moment.

Devo


Ah I see.

Didn't know this, so excuse my ignorance.

Is it also common practice for the removal of the larger Barra to be left on the banks?

If so, does this sort of thing encourage bad fishing habits from other fisherman that aren't part of the removal of large Barra?

Juicy

[devocean]

Jas I also look forward to the day when Jacks out number the barra , now that would be great impoundment fishing, catching big barra is fun but nothing strikes and runs like a jack, think I might open up a lure shop on the dam that gets it right

[devocean]

By the way juicy thanks for subsidising medicare you just keep buing those durries someones got to pay for the safety net

[A_DIFF_PERSPECTIVE]

"Caravan Park Talk" as I call it, is most detrimental to many anglers chances of tangling with a barra on their fishing holiday! That same talk is the birth origin of many falicies, misconceptions and mythological stories that unfortunately corrupt the minds of many! What worse position for an absorbent sole who lacks knowledge, but wants to gain as much as he/she can! If we believed all the rumours and so called 'rules about barra' that get passed in the parks and at boat ramps, we would discover that there are only about 5 days a month that barra could be possibly caught. Match that with biased, unsupported theories on these 'new' fisheries and all of a sudden, 'those who travel and talk' spread the words to all and sundry! Those with experience need to voice a few facts at times to keep certain practices under control, as to stop the gathered momentum that some 'topics' accumulate!
I'm sure many on this site with the wisdom, and factual and supportive evidence can and will, (as previous, myself included) stand out from the crowd to voice some "Solid Foundations!"
Education of the public through flyers, posts, MAGS, even short TV commercials is a sure way to get a few messages across.
I'll put my hand up whenever needed.
Too much dissappointment is noted by many on this topic of our future fishing!

Johnny M
Fishing Guide
Lake Awoonga

** erect dorsal spines and fins show an alert and still energised 25kg barra destined for a quick release. Minimal impact is the name of the game when landing, unhooking and releasing these fish for future opportunities!

[thumps]

By the way juicy thanks for subsidising medicare you just keep buing those durries someones got to pay for the safety net


so much for a sense of humour :o

[juicyfruit]

Johnny M,

I pretty much started to form this opinion too.

Juicy

P.s. Hope to bump into you at Awoonga in January