Recreational anglers out of Bermagui and Narooma reported having huge schools of the big tuna responding to their trail of bait cubes under their boats. The report said that there were large numbers of fish up to 100kg taking beer cans fished like a popper on the surface. Meanwhile long-lining commercial vessels out of the ports have also been taking advantage of the tuna run, although depressed prices due to weak Japanese markets have taken the gloss of the catches.
Actually the number of bluefin tuna was so prevalent off Portland in Victoria a few weeks ago that they were pushing up from the south and were being encountered at the NSW Far South Coast seamounts. Last year was also a good year for bluefin with fish up to 130kg, but the number of fish encountered in recent days has been simply stunning with some vessels catching and releasing more than 30 big fish in a session.
Scott Bradley at Bermagui Bait and Tackle reported the run started late last week off Tathra, south of Bermagui, where one boat caught and released at least 30 fish in one cubing sessions. Another group of anglers out of Bermagui targeted the tuna on flyfishing gear. Word has gotten out fast, but there is no guarantee as to how long the fish will stick around creating a tourism windfall.
