mystic shad

many thanks jethro

heya Players, Shads almost finished the house reno's, our second son Domiinic is 13 weeks old, My new tinny is 20 weeks old and I'm to christen it on a bucks weekend to mungo brush myall lakes. Ive never fished let alone been to myall lakes. Can anyone givve me the drum of what to expect and areas worth investigating? Mucho appreciado

Please forward me the exact information regarding the richmond river catch. My position as nsw president of the Australian Institute of Horticulture ensures a reply from ministers regardless of the topic. Bet you never thought a clown like me has a serious side Cheers

Permission to board Captain? As I play in a wee boat, space is paramount. I Shadapted the rod holders by screwing it to a piece of ply and rivetted alloy two guides onto the boat. It's a little rough but I find the system very handy. If I am going under low bridges or branches, I jsut slip the board and all rods out of the guides and lie her down. When I get home, I slip the whole rack out of the boat and hang it on the wall. Saves a stack fiddling about

You're right Iain, most methods of farming are hard work, however the rewards are there when good conditions prevail. 3 years is not such a long time to harvest. Take into consideration that you're harvesting each year after your third year of starting with a fresh farm. Whether you farm plants or animals . The ethos about it is crop protection and husbandry. Regardless of what business you are involved in. If you havent done your homework and know your product then you are in a high risk area. QX would not have happened overnight. evidence of diseased stock would have been gradually increasing until critical mass occurs. CSIRO would be busy as we speak driving up and down the coast collecting oysters from each river. documenting every minor difference and peculiarities then turn down the lights, put on some marvin gaye tunes and leave em to their own devices . Its a good lesson for the rest of the industry. If the racks are demolished, maybe cowan might get a few more residents

Nice one player! Congratulations

I am saddended but not surprised at the outbreak of qx disease. Jo cool, Qx only affects Sydney rock oyster. Interesting to note that not all S RO"s are affected. A quick run down on the disease. The Q in qx abbreviates the disease origin. Queensland. It seems that oysters with low qty's of phenyloxidase (chemical responsible for oyster disese resistance) are susceptible to qx. The qx spores infect the digestive system and gradually inhibit the oyster from eating. (maybe jenny craig could employ these tactics ) Now, here's where the fun starts and I get to gloat whilst blowing not 1 trumpet but the whole brass band! It seems that disease resistance is prevalent in wild oyster communities (rocks, wharves etc) Why is this so Shad? I'm glad you asked. Now take notes cos I'll be asking questions later! (sorry for the digression) Wild communities as opposed to farmed communities have one main difference betwen them. GENETIC DIVERSITY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I attempted to broach this subject earlier using bream breeding as an example. Wild communities host oysters of all different shapes n sizes, not just big fat creamy plump oysters that farmers exploit. Big n fat oysters come about by two reasons 1, farmers thin the oysters out thus providing 1 oyster room to grow whereas wild oysters are dense and growing on top of each other, hence less room = little oyster. reason 2, GENETIC DIVERSITY. Farmers thin out the smaller & perceived weaker oysters on the racks to develop a consistant crop. Most oyster farms propagate the next generation of oyster from natural "spat" fall.(the immediate offspring from the oysters they harvest = inbreeding) Spats a tiny wee shell less oysters floating around the water looking for a home. Now here is the issue that has come right back and bitten the whinging farmers right on the arse. Sadly, most harvesters of semi wild crops be it oysters, fish etc, can't be arsed to take the time to develop an intimate knowledge of the organism they are exploiting. They are happier to maintain the same practices year after year (90 years in trhe hawkesbury). Then they are surprised when crops fail. The dick heads have been harvesting the same offspring from the previous harvest for 90 years. Consider the situation that they have been thinning the smaller slower growing varieties (that probably have higher phenyloxidase levels or qx resistance) in preference for big fat arsed oysters that get to market quicker with higher cash returns. The big fat arsed oyster for ninety years has undergone "Incest" (the game the whole family can play). 90 years of gradual thinning of the gene pool, resulting in an oyster comparible to pedigree dogs with hip displasure, tasmanians with cleft pallets and extra fingers etc. Of the 7 deadly sins, Greed is close to #1. Greed has dictated they take from their farm without considering the vital issue of giving back to their farm. (ie no consideration for the health of their crop) If they had allowed a percentage of non uniformed oyster to reside in the crop, diversity & thus resistance would prevail). It's akin to sacrificing $$$ each crop to maintain your future earning capabilities. Can you see a parralel with oyster farmers and rural farmers with soil salinity problems? Take take take without any give give give. Will be mankinds downfall. Despite the arguments from my fellow learned fishraiders, Estuary fish species are heading down the same track courtesy of the current legal size regulations and thus once again compromising the gene pool and genetic variabilities. It's really quite simple. the less variety breeding adults of any organism have to breed with, the likliehood of you shagging your cousin becomes greater (inbreeding) Thanks for taking the time to read my rant. I best go cos I am running late for my 10am sermon followed by a stint at the domain.

Sabotage the mower Joe! you know it makes sense

once or twice a week. However I have managed to negiotiate a landmark decision from management (aka bride) Shads has aptly called it the "sick day protocol" If I don't go fishing for a week. The time i didn't use can manifest. I keep two seperate records of the time on and off. There are a few additional rules, but it seems to work well

Am I right to say that the bait that will catch you more crabs than ever is a female crab of the species you are targetting. An old bloke up the road keeps a female blue swimmer in a tank, He tethers the tart to the cage sinks it and waits till the boys come sniffing round.

Yes. the goon had that eery colour of water, Lifeless green

as they say Joe. It's all about being there. Dissapointing result, mind you it was pre ordaned for this shad. Having left home prior to having my mornings consti"pooh"tion. My mind was certainly elsewhere. NOT TIL I GOT HOME Great to meet you. Next time I promise to take you on the punt for that Goondola ride.

Check the university of technologys studies http://www.science.uts.edu.au/des/StaffPag...okvaleCreek.pdf http://www.science.uts.edu.au/des/StaffPag...Macrophytes.pdf http://www.science.uts.edu.au/des/StaffPag...osquitoFish.pdf

Although there are abnormally higher levels of lead copper zinc and iron within the goon. The main contributor to its unhealthy state is eutrophic conditions, in other words excessive nutrients. When you combine this with high water temps, sewerage overflows/leaking pipes and poor waterflow,you get algaelblooms. The fish move closer to the entrance when these conditions happen. Once decent rains come along, the blooms settles down, the sewrage overflows and the system starts winding itself up for another toxic bloom. Thanks to Sydney water and NSW Govt relieving the water company of $30 million a year, this cycle will continue to happen. If NSW govt didn't take the loot ferom Sydney water, they may be able to repair or shut down some of the 29 outfalls within the goon. Homebush bay is an excellent example of what fish can survive in. As the goon has very limited shellfish, the bream you catch there have beautiful teeth. Everything seems to dine on the abundance of poddy mullet. The major fish kill a while ago was due to a spill of anticholinisterase agent. (nerve agent) Most insecticides even the alleged safe pyrethrum is a nerve agent. This kind of stuff is deadly in an aquatic environment. Cholinisterase is the chemical which seperates the synapses in your nerves. Its a bit like insulation tape, when the agent infects the nerve, there is no insulation between synapses, messages pass back and forth to each nerve and result in the organism having a fit or dancing strangely. In summary, It's our pooh and wee that both feeds the goon and kills the goon

Boating is banned due to polluted water. If you happen to be arrested for boating on the goon. The law willprobably schedule you rather than imprison you. A copper mate says. You're not a criminal, you're just plain crazy! Read below for some interesting facts The Manly Lagoon Estuary Management Study (1995) states that The water of the Lagoon is EUTROPHIC and sensitive to further increases in nutrient inputs. Manly Lagoon sediment is CONTAMINATED with HEAVY METALS and, compared with Sydney Harbour and Curl Curl Lagoon, has the highest average levels of copper and lead. The concentrations of heavy metals in the muddy surface sediments of the lagoon appear to have increased significantly over the period l985 to l993. On the available data, concentrations of lead, mercury and zinc exceed overseas sediment standards (Washington, USA) over much of the lagoon. There are 29 Sydney Water sewer overflows in the catchment. An eutrophic lagoon has limited aesthetic appeal due to high turbidity and the potential for periodic blooms of planktonic algae, including in some instances blooms of toxic blue-green algae. "Apart from visual problems, algal blooms could generate other water quality problems such as production of unpleasant odours, deoxygenation and ultimately fish kills" (Cheng, 1993). Aquatic Flora and Fauna There is little habitat for aquatic life because: The natural vegetation of the lagoon has been greatly modified by urban development and the spread of introduced plant species. There are no saltmarshes or mangroves and only very small amounts of seagrass which fringe the shoreline in the lower reaches of the lagoon. Fish species that can be found are: Mullet Bream Flathead Whiting Tropical fish species that have been found in the Lagoon are: Mangrove Jack Giant Herring Big-eyed Trevally Australian Bass A Gondwanan fish in Manly Lagoon Catchment! In the creeks above Manly Dam, there is a Gondwanan fish species called Galaxias Brevipinnis, commonly called the Climbing Galaxias. This Gondwanan fish, which lives in Curl Curl creek is also found in New Zealand, another fragment of the great southern continent Gondwana. This fish is reputed to be the first fish to conquer the New Zealand Glacial lakes because of its phenonmenal climbing ability. It is a threatened species in Manly Dam. Macrobenthic infauna : The diversity and abundance of these is relatively low and particularly poor in the middle and upstream locations of the lagoon. This is indicative of poor bottom water quality and sediment contamination. Frogs The Red-Crowned Toadlet (Pseudophryne australis) is restricted to Hawkebury Sandstone areas in the Manly Dam area. It is also a threatened species.