Sea Mullet 30cm limit -why?

[the gecko]

So I cant use a 15cm mullet as bait anymore? Have I missed something with the new regs? Sea Mullet and Diamond Scale Mullet now has a 30cm min length, and bag limit of 20.

I guess all mullet caught in tidal esturies are gonna be Sea Mullet, there isnt another type is there? The new regs seem pretty clear. If I get one in a castnet , then I have to throw it back (without a hook).

There goes one of my favorite jack baits. 15cm is a nice size bait for a big river fish. So I have to buy frozen Mullet Flicker packs from the shop if I want em around that size? Will the pros continue to sell small mullet to the bait packers?

Are mullet a threatened species?

Andrew

[tailorboi99]

Hey Andrew, I don't believe that Mullet are actually threatened. I think fisheries just want to have alot more larger Mullet. I'd rather the size limit 15cm and bag limit of 30 or so as live bait fishos go through 20 Mullet like there's no tomorrow.

Thanks for posting,

Tom

[Lizard Man]

Not all Mullet caught in estuaries will be Sea Mullet.

I can't believe the day has come where we have to be experts at identifying mullet.

Anyway, the Fantail Mullet(Silver Mullet), Bluetail Mullet, Tallegalane, Tiger Mullet and Flat-Tail Mullet are all still okay and all grow larger than your desired 15cm bait. Grants has great pictures and descriptions for identifying the various species.

Edit: P.S. I think(I'm no expert) the reason for the bag limit on Sea Mullet is because they are the ones that come under commercial pressure, or can be viably netted commercially, hence DPI looking at them and their stocks. If mullet are a threatened species, it's only due to commercial over fishing and large quantities of mullet being netted and used as cat fod or fertilizer.

Once again, the rec fisho loses out.

[ffejsmada]

I don't know too much about Mullet myself, but theres other species besides Diamond scale and Sea mullet.

The Sea Mullet is quite often called a Bully Mullet.

There's popeye mullet, yelloweye mullet, flat-tailed,mangrove,tiger and heaps more, the list goes on.

I don't think the smallish estuary mullet up to about 15cm are sea mullet, or bully's though. The bigger mullet that leap out and jump everywhere could be Bully's or Sea Mullet though. I'm not sure.
Then again they could be Yelloweye??

I think the common poddy (the small mullet caught in cast nets) is the Sand Mullet, or sometimes called a Tallegalane.

[Lizard Man]

All sorts of mullet leap and jump, not just sea mullet.

Sand mullet is a name applied to a few species, depending on where you are. Sand mullet are usually Bluetail or Tallegalane.

The "poddies" that are caught in cast nets in little schools, is usually the Fantail Mullet. They have a more square cut tail than the Tallegalane, but are very similar. Either way, they are both perfectly legal baits in QLD.

[FNQCairns]

Because recfisherman are a very easy target, like shooting fish in a barrel, The sea mullet is the common mullet within estuary's with a cast net for bait.

Any excuse for fisherys will only ever amount to a technical tick based on a half truth...pseudo religion stikes again only because we have no political way to level the playing ground.

cheers fnq

[ffejsmada]

[quote=Lizard Man;994111]All sorts of mullet leap and jump, not just sea mullet.

/quote]

That's why I said could be!

[FNQCairns]

All sorts of mullet leap and jump, not just sea mullet.

Sand mullet is a name applied to a few species, depending on where you are. Sand mullet are usually Bluetail or Tallegalane.

The "poddies" that are caught in cast nets in little schools, is usually the Fantail Mullet. They have a more square cut tail than the Tallegalane, but are very similar. Either way, they are both perfectly legal baits in QLD.

I thought they the poddys where mainly small sea mullet, caught around mangrove areas dirty water, mud etc ...are you sure on the fantails??

I am happy to be wrong, from fishing seq years ago i thought they were 90% of the time sea mullet not yet big enough on average to head to sea on migration...that is the ones destined for a rec fishermans bucket of water.

cheers fnq

[Lizard Man]

That's why I said could be!

Yup...followed by "I'm not sure". So I thought I'd help you out.

But really, contrary to what you may believe, it's not a rib at you mate, it's for the benefit of someone out there who may read a post like that and see some mullet jumping and avoid throwing a net at them because "they could be". Then again, I could be wrong.

FNQ - I suppose that depends on who/where you hang around. I grew up always catching little Fantails and just refer to them as poddies. Just as others refer to any little mullet as a poddy. Just another one of those times where fishermen using slang names ends up a bit like chinese whispers sometimes. How many mother-in-law fish are there??? But back on the topic, it really points to people now needing to know the difference between species, or having a place to look them up.

[straddie]

The legal limit has been 30cm for sea mullet in Queensland for as long as I can remember, since at least the 70's.