THE time is nigh, at the time of writing there is about 108,000 seconds left before cod season starts. So first and foremost here are the rules as it stands right now:
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- Minimum size allowed to be harvested is 55cm
- Maximum size allowed to be harvested is 75cm
- There is a maximum of two fish to be kept per day and maximum of four fish allowed in possession.
Some fishermen cannot differentiate Murray cod from trout cod. Trout cod usually have a black, or at least dark horizontal stripe, on the side of the head, level with the pupil of the eye, although sometimes the stripe is missing.
Juvenile Murray cod can also have this stripe but only in small fish well under legal size, which must be released anyway. Murray cod generally have an overall olive green colouration, often with a vivid white belly. The markings are of a mottled appearance, although they appear more spotted in very large individuals. The same general colouration and patterning continues right across the body and head.
Trout cod generally have a more blue-grey colouration with a grey belly which often looks "dirty", especially under the chin. The dark markings have a more speckled appearance and usually reduce in number and size over the head.
The base colour of the fish often intensifies over the head, giving rise to the alternate name "blue nose cod". The lower jaw is shorter than the upper in trout cod, but this can be hard to see in a fish on the end of the line in the water. In Murray cod the lower jaw is either the same length or slightly longer than the upper. Murray cod generally have a concave head profile with a relatively blunt, broad snout, whereas trout cod have a straight or slightly convex profile with a more pointed, narrower snout. There is no difference in the shape, colouration, or position of the fins.
Trout cod are generally more aggressive than Murray cod. Some anglers have described trout cod as being like "Murray cod on steroids".
Seeing as how a lot of anglers have planned a trip this weekend you had better have a good look at the weather - predictions of high rainfall of up to 70mm - which may make for a pretty gnarly day on the water. I know that Blowering is releasing a lot of water - 40 gigalitres in a week - with levels dropping pretty dramatically over the last couple of days, so the river is rising.
I did manage some fishing on the river with good mate Graham “Charlie” Pertzel last weekend and even though we were only on the water for three hours, we could see the difference in the speed of the water in that short of time. Remember, a fishing trip was never ruined by wearing a life jacket
