Carp fishing in Australia

[Polly]

A good freind of mine is emigrating to Oz on October and is concerned that he will not be able to do any carp fishing. He has loads of gear which he doesn't want to get rid of but also doesn't want to pay a fortune to ship it out there if carp fishing is scorned upon. He tells me ALL carp are considered as vermin and you MUST kill any you catch, apparently there's a stiff fine if you get caught returning carp to the water!!!!

Is this fact or does anyone know better, is carp fishing outlawed or is it just returning them that's illegal? My mate said he'd not be able to "catch & kill" and would rather pack up carp fishing all together.

Can anyone advise if or where in Austalia catching carp and being able to return them is acceptable? Not sure which area he's moving to.

 

Thanks - Phil

[Scotty T]

Have a look here Phil http://www.carp.com/forum/f67/s , looks like your mate has heard right.

 

Scotty

Edited January 6, 2006 by Scotty T

[jeepster]

have to say though, if i lived in australia, i don't think i'd ever think about carp fishing, plently of other species to target

[RobStubbs]

Got to agree with Jeepster. The carp there are so prolific that they are generally stunted and the numbers of them are massive. He would find catching hundreds of small carp in a day of no interest after a very short while. I found that out the first time I went to South Africa and very quickly switched over to fishing for the catfish instead.

 

Rob.

[Newt]

The fish won't know the gear is 'carp gear' so if he has good tackle, probably well worth taking it as it can do nicely for other species.

 

As to the regulations, I'm not sure that the 'must kill, cannot return' policy is universal. I think it varies according to the region and the water so that in may places, it is optional and up to the angler's choice.

 

I live in the US where carp are considered by most to be a 'trash fish' and I get strange looks and comments when I tell folks I'm actually targeting them but I don't let that bother me. When they see the bend in the rod, it's not unusual for anglers to have a change of heart.

 

As to the fish all being small and stunted, I gotta doubt that. We have a few places where that is the case but most larger lakes will have a balanced population where carp are simply one species among many and there are some larger fish.

[RobStubbs]

The fish won't know the gear is 'carp gear' so if he has good tackle, probably well worth taking it as it can do nicely for other species.

 

As to the regulations, I'm not sure that the 'must kill, cannot return' policy is universal. I think it varies according to the region and the water so that in may places, it is optional and up to the angler's choice.

 

I live in the US where carp are considered by most to be a 'trash fish' and I get strange looks and comments when I tell folks I'm actually targeting them but I don't let that bother me. When they see the bend in the rod, it's not unusual for anglers to have a change of heart.

 

As to the fish all being small and stunted, I gotta doubt that. We have a few places where that is the case but most larger lakes will have a balanced population where carp are simply one species among many and there are some larger fish.

 

Newt,

There are unoubtedly some areas in Aus where carp don't thrive massively and bigger fish can be found, however that is a rarity. You need a combination of the right (or wrong for breeding) climate and a lot of predators that eat the eggs and small carp. Unlike you I believe the policy is universal over there and carp are classed as vermin. A few years back I saw some 'impressive ' pictures of piles of dead carp along the river bank of one of their main rivers.

 

Anyway there are plenty of other fish to catch over there, many of which get as big as if not bigger than carp.

 

Rob.

[Newt]

Rob - from what I read, I agree that carp are considered trash fish in OZ. I just wasn't sure that the manditory 'no return' policy was universal.

 

As to the massive populations of stunted carp and very little of any other decent fish, we do have some waters over here that fit that description. The problem is quite often blamed on the carp but rather than being the main cause, they simply get the blame because they are tough and can live in poor quality water so they survive, very little else does, and mistaken 'cause & effect' thinking puts them down as a cause rather than an effect.

 

Granted, carp do muddy the water and if there are too many, the silt has a bad effect on the growth of aquatic vegitation and hampers efforts to improve water quality but careful investigation will almost always turn up an original cause other than the carp.

[chevin]

The Aussie laws regarding carp are difficult to interpret. Carp are regarded as vermin in many places and must not be returned. However, while no warnings are posted it is illegal to fish for them in some waters and you get nicked if you don't return them! I caught the fish below in a local pond and got fined $100.00 for my efforts despite the fact that I returned it. (It is just illegal to fish for them:unsure: ) I broke some local by-law and despite having helped run Little Athletics, been Area Coordinator in Neighbourhood Watch and employing local people when I was in business, I was told that the council had a responsibility to protect the people of my suburb against people like me when I appealed against the fine.

 

Carp tackle is good gear for many branches of sea fishing, and it would be a tragedy to leave it and then find that you had plenty of use for it when you got here.

 

 

 

 

[GLOBE]

I've fished a great deal in Australia for carp, and searched for them throughout the Murray/Darling River systems from Snowy Mountains to the sea, and most of the southern lakes, and NEVER had any problems returning carp to the waters (I try to return all my carp alive to the water). Just use common sense, as it is very easy in most places to return fish without anyone knowing. In my opinion the carp's role within the eco system of Australian waters is completely misunderstood, just because a law states something doesn't mean that it is the right thing to do (A similar rule applies in Germany - with ALL fish - but at least most anglers prefer to ignore it and return all fish to the water).

I don't mind anyone killing some fish for food, but just chucking them up the bank and letting them rot, or stabbing them with pitchforks is not my idea of showing respect to the fish - any species of fish.

 

Yes, there are places in Australia where the carp are small or stunted, but there are also places where there is a better average of carp, with fish to 30lb+ and some exceeding 50lb - both commons and mirrors -Australia is a wonderful country to be in and provides some wonderful fishing for carp and other species.

[chevin]

. In my opinion the carp's role within the eco system of Australian waters is completely misunderstood, just because a law states something doesn't mean that it is the right thing to do

 

Unfortunately opinions resulting in the introduction of alien species into the ecologies of of other countries are not necessarily correct either. There is no doubt that carp have had a detrimental effect on indiginous spieces of fish in this country and they have altered the characters of some waters too. Unfortunately they were introduced before the dangers of indiscriminate introduction of alien species was fully appreciated. The damage carp or other introduced species may cause is not easily seen or evaluated and by the time it was it was probably far too late. There are several outstanding examples of this in this country, the rabbit, the fox, the cane toad and cat are but four of them.

 

I would hope that anyone coming to this country would be prepared to comply with our laws and not follow the advice of someone who does not live here and whose only interest is in carp fishing and not the well being of Australia.

 

Personally, I have no problem with ridding Australian waters of carp. I enjoy carp fishing - at least I did when I lived in the UK - but I would like to see one law throughout the country and if that requires the destruction of carp then so bit it. If they are judged to be vermin then anglers should not put their opinions above that of the law and either cease to fish for them, or be prepared to destroy any they catch.

Edited January 9, 2006 by chevin