Bream numbers are growing every day, and are now dominating catches if you’re using bait.
They will school up around bar entrances for their breeding period; prime locations are rock outcrops and the edges of main channels and the best time is usually the run-in tide.
Top baits are live yabbies, mullet or fowl gut.
Whiting have been hard to find as a result of dropping water temperatures and discoloured water.
The Nerang has faired better than most and is still producing whiting. However, the number of small bait-stealing bream around will drive you mad and cost you a fortune in worms.
Now is the time of year to target big mulloway.
Look for a few days in a row of strong westerly winds then use a live mullet close to a bar entrance or a deep hole in an estuary and fish around the turn of the tide.
There are still mud crabs around, and because of the rains we should see them for another month.
Prawn numbers have been down over the past few weeks, but they should still be around for another month if you stay out of the dirty water.
Surf anglers are having a ball, especially in northern NSW where chopper tailor are in big numbers.
There were also a few reports of them turning up on the Southport Pumping Jetty and the beaches close by at dusk this week.
On the offshore scene, reports this week have mainly been about snapper and a few mulloway to 10kg caught just outside bar entrances and on the bait grounds.
Surprisingly, there were Spanish mackerel caught again this week so don’t pack the lures away just yet.
Freshwater anglers will still catch fish over the next month. Numbers will be down but the size will be up for bass.
Reports from Somerset and Wivenhoe were doom and gloom this week, but North Pine Dam faired better, as did Hinze Dam with lots of small fish.
