Mooloolaba Yacht Club pontoons

[mini696]

A couple of years ago I was at MYC for a sailing regatta and noticed something super interesting. From the pontoons you could see the bottom (5m?) and what did I find?? FISH!! Lots of them. They looked like a bunch of Bream and I think Parrots (if they inhabit the rivers there).

The interesting bit was where they were located... Only in one place (First finger nearest the Trawlers as close to the club as you can get). Thirty or Forty fish all within one bay (20m^2 or so). I walked the whole pontoons (all of them) and that was the ONLY place I could see fish (including bait).

This was the defining moment in my fishing time when I realised the fish arent always everywhere. They are usually only in one spot.

Would anyone like to explain possible reasons why they school like that?? Even when the tide changed they were still in the same spot (only on the other side of the pontoon).

[Lucky_Phill]

Well Michael, fish are so silly that they have to hang around in ' schools' as they never seem to learn.

There is one ' constant', in the fishig game, and that is the word............................." Structure".

Structure can be many things, pontoons, pylons, reefs, rocks, wrecks, ledges, rises, bommies, weed beds, rubble bottom, sand flats, melon holes, gutters, and the list can go on.

Fish inhabit ' structures' for many reasons, and the most important reason, is that ...............other fish are there. The food chain thingie.

Why at the Moobar YC Pylons/ pontoons, 'cause they are close to the trawlers and the pontoons have ' growth' on them, which in turn attracts little fish to feed on growth, which attracts big fish to feed on little fish, which attracts fishermen to feed on big fish ( if possible ).

Fish also hang in schools for protection from predators, as a school of fish appears large, as like the Bearded Dragon extends his mayne when danger is near, etc.

Hope I have confused you,

cheers Phill ;D ;) ;) ;) ::) ::)

[Dug]

I saw a large parrot fish around the Mourilyan harbour jetty recently ( outside Innisfail NQ) I had never seen a parrot so close to shore before He would have been about 4KG in about 2m of water just before dawn. Has anyone else found parrots in shallow water?

[Zeeke]

ive seen Parrot and other reefies caught in Mooloolaba Harbour, mostly around the La Balsa Park Boat Ramp feeding on the scraps of there cousins that have been caught outside.. mostly venus tuskfish.. but also small red emperor, squire and moari cod.. which isnt too suprising, my parents have photos of spottie mackeral and schoolie mackeral that they caught off Kawana Island before it was developed.. and ive also seen Dolphins swimming up the river

Tim

[jeffo]

i used to get plenty of mackeral and tailor at the wharf complex (underwater world) hasnt happened for a few years now though.

[Kerry]

....I had never seen a parrot so close to shore before He would have been about 4KG in about 2m of water just before dawn. #Has anyone else found parrots in shallow water?

Even less than 2 metres, barely enough water for the boat (15 foot alloy) to float in and the bigger parrots in this depth of water on such a short line don't give one little bit and more often than not they would straighten 6/0's

Cheers, Kerry.