Anglers meet Rockhampton: Australia’s next barra capital
Written By: Steve Morgan
About the author:
Steve Morgan is publisher of Queensland Fishing Monthly magazine and a qualified marine scientist. He’s been enjoying fishing in Queensland for the last 35 years and relishes the opportunities that the Net Free Zones offer. He is based in Brisbane and gets on the water over 100 days a year.
It may be called Australia’s beef capital, but with some clever changes to the rules, Rockhampton is set to become Australia’s barramundi (aka ‘barra’) capital.
When it comes down to it, Rockhampton must have been designed by an angler. The vast, grassy floodplains that sustain the livestock also hold hidden gems in the billabongs and lagoons that sparkle like jewels as you fly into town.
Barramundi. Tens of thousands of them. Australia’s iconic sport fish.
Whenever the mighty Fitzroy River floods, the barra depart these hidden backwaters and enter the river proper to complete their life cycle.
In November 2015, commercial netting was removed from the Fitzroy River and adjoining Keppel Bay and already, thousands of barramundi remain in the river and are helping build the barra populations back to levels that haven’t been seen for decades.
Not surprisingly, the results for recreational anglers have been virtually instantaneous.