Fish Eagle – October 4, 2013

Unfortunately it was also the last weekend of the shad season, which means that from now on anglers may not catch or have shad in their possession. Those caught poaching shad will be prosecuted and will end up with criminal records. As in the past, fishermen will try their luck to poach these fish as the limited supply will again push the prices up. Shad is classified as a non-commercial fish, making it illegal to sell or buy. So, rather than being part of the problem and risk a run in with the law, buy some of the numerous other delicious eating fish legally available at your favourite seafood store.
I fished most of last week in the Westbrook area and saw very few fish caught. Word was however that anglers ‘klapped’ the shad on Tuesday and Wednesday at the Umgeni mouth and Glenashley beach. With this information, I decided to try my luck at Durban View in the Umhlanga area on Friday morning. I was on the beach before first light and fished until 9am, only to be rewarded with one half hearted pull. In the car park I started to talk to the conservation people and found that they had called in to all the popular beaches from Durban to Umhlanga and found that there were no shad around.
The Salt Rock area has fished quite well recently and I saw photos of a nice copper bream, a respectable sandfish (part of the sole family) and a couple of well sized shad that were caught by one angler. The same angler told me that he had also seen some big stumpies caught in this area and sealice, cracker shrimp and crab seemed to be what enticed the fish to bite. Most of the fish were caught at night.
I saw two small sandsharks caught last week and this could be good news for the forthcoming summer fishing season when the big flatfish move into the local beaches. With the flatfish the summer pompano may arrive – although it is still a bit early for them.
Decent mullet are being caught right in the shore dump from several beaches at the moment. Target these excellent light tackle sport fish by using a small hook and long strips of sardine. Surprisingly, mullet is a good eating fish, but it has to be skinned before cooking.
There are still some big garrick about and the key to success is to have decent live bait and patience. The offshore guys caught a couple of these fish off the Tongaat mouth on Wednesday last week, but found they had moved on by the following day – even though sea conditions were perfect. I also heard that there have been a few garrick caught off the Umgeni mouth recently. They should start shoaling now as they prepare to move South again – offshore anglers and spearfishermen should persevere in the Tongaat Mouth area as good catches have been recorded here in the past.
With the shad season now closed, it is time for the surf anglers to change tactics and focus on other edible species that are around. I heard from a good source that a few decent shoal salmon have been caught in the Tongaat area recently. We all know about the stumpies and as I mentioned before there is always a chance of pulling a pompano – there is plenty of life after the shad season.
Sealice