SEVEN-YEAR-OLD Dakoda Haack-Ross must be thinking “How easy is this”.

With just his third cast with a soft plastic off the beach at Salamander Bay, Dakoda hooked and landed his first flathead.

“Nothing to it,” he reckoned.

“What’s all the fuss about?”

All reports I am receiving lately are suggesting that we are in for one cracker jack flathead season.

This, in my opinion, is the result of the responsible decision made by local fishers to release all female flathead over 70 cm long before NSW Fisheries made it law.

Years ago, I recall not featuring big female flathead in my column if they were not to be released.

It took a while to catch on but it did and every fisher I know took a photograph of the beautiful fish before gently releasing it to fight another day.

It was an unwritten agreement that a big female flathead, full of eggs, was better off in the water than the kitchen. How good is that!

Old timers will recall when it was a real achievement to be broadcast when a string of big flathead were caught.

I have seen photos of the fish hanging from the clothesline, or nailed to the fence, with the proud fisherman and his rod showing his prized catch.

How times have changed.

Do you recall the horror some years ago when fish bag limits were halved!

This was the decision that would destroy recreational fishing.

“Why go fishing if I can only catch ten snapper or ten flathead when I could catch 20 of each?” fishers asked.

Time to sell the boat and take up golf.

Over time the decision by NSW Fisheries was accepted and some even came to the belief that maybe ten snapper or flathead could be further reduced.

My advice to Fisheries is to be proactive in the management of fish stocks; don’t wait until a problem emerges before you act.

There is always the opportunity to increase the numbers that can be taken when the stocks recover as happened with the catch of lobsters being increased from two to three.
Be brave.

By John ‘Stinker’ CLARKE