The Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee (MRCCC) has welcomed the proposed new fishing regulations that relate to Mary River Cod believing they will give the iconic fish, currently classified as endangered, a much better chance of building up numbers.
The Mary River Cod, once thought the be a sub-species of the Murray Cod but now recognised as a species in its own right, occurs naturally only in the Mary Catchment with previous population estimates putting its numbers as low as only 600 remaining.
Prime breeding habitat for the Cod in both Obi Obi Creek and Tinana Creek is reflected in a total year-round fishing ban in those areas. As well as this, a closed season from August 1 to October 30 in the Mary system upstream of Gympie would give a much better chance for successful natural spawning.
MRCCC Chairman Ian Mackay said there was a closed season around spawning time but many anglers seemed unaware of it.
“The male Mary River Cod is totally attentive to the eggs following spawning and is very protective of the nest. Should one be caught at that time and removed for even a short time, the entire year’s offspring are likely to die,” he said.
Spawning is triggered by water temperature and usually occurs during August, September and October, the months proposed for the total ban on fishing upstream of Gympie.
“MRCCC and other partners have been running a successful captive breeding and release program based at the hatchery at Lake McDonald for a number of years but undoubtedly anything that can assure the success of natural spawning must be encouraged,” Ian said.
“Their whole focus is to give the Mary River Cod better protection in its natural environment at a very critical time of its life cycle, but balancing this with the chance for anglers to fish for cod in specified stocked impoundments.”
