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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:10:27 GMT 10
It's 'bait, but not as we know itThe Nelson Mail | Tuesday, 02 December 2008 LIGHTWEIGHT: The average whitebait catch may not tip the scales much, but it goes a long way (left). FLASH FRY: Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology's Serge Crottaz prepares whitebait (right). — Photos: MARION VAN DIJK/The Nelson Mail.WHITEBAIT may be bound up in mystique and mythology, but that doesn't mean you can't be adventurous with it.
Whitebait has to be a Kiwi icon. The mere mention of the word conjures up joy for many. Even though whitebait in some form or other is enjoyed in many parts of the world, Kiwis love to lay claim to our whitebait as being superior to those caught in other places.
What people may not know is that whitebait, in New Zealand, are the young of five freshwater native species of the galaxiidae family. They can be caught in rivers throughout the country (although West Coasters believe their whitebait is the finest in the country and, arguably, it could be, given the quantity and quality of the catch).
The species are inanga (galaxias maculates), koaro (galaxias brevipinnis), banded kokopu (galaxias fasciatus), giant kokopu (galaxias argenteus) and shortjaw kokopu (galaxias postvectis). In rivers throughout the country, inanga, koaro and banded kokopu form the majority of the catch, with inanga being the most common.
Whitebait start life as eggs laid in estuary vegetation. When the larvae hatch, they are carried out to sea to spend the winter feeding on small crustaceans before starting their return journey upriver to live in fresh water. This is when the whitebait season starts and fisherfolk come out in droves with either fine-meshed hand-held nets or set nets to line river banks all over the country, dreaming of the catch and their first feed of "bait".
There is an air of mystery and intrigue around catching whitebait. For some reason, people are prepared to lie about their catch and will go to the lengths of using false-bottomed buckets to pretend that their catch is meagre, presumably with the intent of discouraging others from fishing in their part of the river. Asking a whitebaiter about where they fish will be received with an uncomfortable shuffle and a vague reply such as "Oh, up the river".
There is as much debate about the right way to cook whitebait as there is fascination with the small silvery fish. A visit to a down-home Kiwi cafe can have you eating whitebait patties where the taste of the whitebait is lost in flour, eggs, the frying and being slapped between two pieces of white bread. More often than not, the ratio of whitebait to batter has the batter winning.
Most Kiwi cooks swear that whitebait should be cooked as plainly as possible. A good rule of thumb when making patties or fritters is to allow about 100 grams of whitebait to one egg to bind them together and create a form.
The disagreement tends to be over what can or should accompany the whitebait, with many arguing that ingredients such as garlic, chives and parsley detract from the taste.
There is a myriad of recipes for whitebait fritters and whitebait omelettes, all more or less following the egg to whitebait ratio, with some recipes advocating flour and others not, and others suggesting separating the egg yolk from the white and beating the whites until fluffy before adding them to the batter.
We would like to suggest that it is, in fact, not sacrilegious to play around with whitebait, and although the flavour is delicate, there are some great ways to enhance that flavour.
Rather than giving you the traditional whitebait fritter or omelette recipe, we would like to share the following, more adventurous, recipes with you. Try these and make your own decisions.______________________________________ Whitebait crepesCELEBRITY BAIT: Keri Hulme's delicious whitebait crepes, they are best served with a Goose Bay chardonnay. — MARION VAN DIJK/The Nelson Mail.This recipe is from author Keri Hulme, an avid and passionate whitebaiter.
These crepes are both delicious and filling.
Serves 4.Crepes batter:- 4 tbsp flour
- 1 egg
- 1 cup of milk
- pinch of salt
- 20g butter, melted
Crepes method:- Mix ingredients into a smooth batter and pour into a lightly buttered hot pan to evenly coat the pan.
- Turn once.
- The crepe should be as thin as possible and evenly browned.
- Set aside, covered, while you make the filling.
Whitebait filling:- 400g whitebait
- 1 tbsp coriander or parsley
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp chopped jalapeno pepper
Filling method:- Using 100g of whitebait per crepe (400g), saute the whitebait in 20g of butter for a couple of minutes until the whitebait is translucent and has barely cooked through.
- Toss through the coriander and jalapeno and salt.
- Spoon on to crepes and roll up.
- Pour remaining butter from the pan over crepes and serve.
Wine match: Goose Bay chardonnay.______________________________________ Whitebait with tomato and caper salsaServes 6-8.
Adapted from FoodDownUnder.com.ZESTY: Whitebait with tomato and caper salsa, to be matched with a Waimea Estates pinot gris. This dish and the crepes were prepared by Serge Crottaz, assisted by Elizabeth Latham and Phillip Reay. — MARION VAN DIJK/The Nelson Mail.Salsa:Combine:- 1 cup seeded, peeled and diced tomatoes
- 1 tbsp capers, finely chopped
- 3 tbsp red onion, finely chopped
- 2 anchovy fillets, finely chopped
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tbsp chopped parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup olive oil
- vinegar or lime juice to taste
Whitebait:- 500g whitebait
- cup of flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp freshly ground pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
Method:- Dredge the whitebait in seasoned flour and saute in clarified butter or vegetable oil until golden and crisp.
- Drain and then heap in the centre of a plate with a couple of tablespoons of the salsa mixture.
- Serve immediately with lime segments.
Wine match: Waimea pinot gris.______________________________________ Sauteed whitebait with fresh asparagus and beurre blancMakes 8 entree-size portions.
Adapted from TVNZ.co.nz.Beurre blanc ingredients:- 50ml white wine
- 50ml white wine vinegar
- 1 shallot
- 8 peppercorns
- 1 bay leaf
- 100ml cream
- 250g butter, cold and cut into small squares
- salt and pepper
- squeeze of lemon juice
Beurre blanc method:- Place the wine and vinegar in a pan.
- Roughly chop the shallot and add to the liquid with the peppercorns and bay leaf.
- Place over a medium heat and reduce by three-quarters.
- Next, add the cream and reduce by half.
- Cool slightly, then return to a very low heat, whisking in the butter piece by piece until it is all incorporated and silky smooth.
- Strain through a sieve to remove solids.
- Season and add the lemon juice.
- Steam the asparagus until just tender — do not overcook.
- Allow 2 to 3 spears of asparagus per person.
Whitebait ingredients:- 400g whitebait
- flour for dredging
- salt and pepper
Whitebait method:- Toss the whitebait in the flour and sieve to remove excess flour.
- Saute in a combination of vegetable oil and butter.
- Cook for about a minute and then toss and cook on the other side.
- Layer the asparagus on the plate followed by a mound of whitebait, then spoon the beurre blanc over the top.
- Finish with a squeeze of lemon.
Wine match: Waimea Estate classic riesling.www.stuff.co.nz/nelson-mail/features/fresh-at-nmit/743825
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:15:23 GMT 10
Whitebait wetlands habitat under constructionBy SHIRLEY WHYTE in Tuatapere - The Southland Times | Wednesday, 18 March 2009BULLDOZERS, diggers and trucks are working to create 25 hectares of wetlands to help juvenile whitebait grow to maturity.
The work is being carried out east of the Waiau River, near the Te Wae Wae Lagoon, on 60ha leased by the Waiau Fisheries and Wildlife Habitat Enhancement Trust from Meridian Energy and the Conservation Department.
Enhancement Trust field officer Mark Sutton said there was a three-year construction phase broken into three blocks, each phase taking a year.
"We are creating some really low dams with a crest height of 1.3 metres that will act as a barrier when the ponds fill with water.
"A head pond at the northern end would gravity feed the series of interconnecting wetland habitats.
"This will create a habitat for juvenile whitebait to enter, grow to maturity and continue the cycle of life, thus increase the biomass of the species," Mr Sutton said.
Short-finned and long-finned eels would also benefit from the wetlands.
Charles Mitchell, who is regarded as a leading fisheries scientist, has been advising the wetlands projects.
Previously, a smaller scale of work was created during the past five years at various locations and those sites have been monitored by post-graduate students.
"The indications are that increasing the availability of wetland habitat will increase the opportunity for all wetland species to breed," Mr Mitchell said.
"Another spinoff will be the increased opportunity in the future for duck shooters during the hunting season."
An access road, car park and plans for walkways across the dams, would allow access to the Waiau River mouth.www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/news/2271026
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:15:38 GMT 10
WHITEBAITRecipes from the West Coast Whitebaiters Association.THAT distinctive New Zealand delicacy which measures 4.5 to 5.5 centimeters in length is eaten whole. It is not related to the European whitebait, and is caught during spring in the tidal river estuaries as the fish move upstream from the sea.
‘Whitebaiting’ is mostly recreational fishing, however there is commercial fishing on the West Coast of the South Island. Fishing for whitebait is controlled by ‘The Whitebait Fishing Regulations’. The juvenile smelt, an unrelated species, that is fished in the northern half of the North Island is often sold as Waikato whitebait.
Whitebait has a very delicate flavour, and for this reason should be cooked with care. Cooking needs to be brief and simple.
Enjoy the following recipes ...______________________________________ WHITEBAIT ROLLINGREDIENTS:- 1 cup flour
- 50g butter
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup mashed potato
- 1 egg
METHOD:- Preheat oven to 170°C.
- Mix together flour, potato, baking powder, melted butter and beaten egg.
- Roll out on a lightly floured board and cover with the whitebait.
- Sprinkle with the chopped onion and seasonings.
- Roll up and bake for one hour.
Serve sliced either hot or cold.______________________________________ ANGELA’S RECIPEINGREDIENTS:- 6 eggs to 1 kilo of bait
- Salt
- 1 Tablespoon flour
- 1 Tablespoon milk
METHOD:- Beat eggs until fluffy then add salt flour milk and beat again.
- Put whitebait into mixture while fluffy and mix together with spoon.
- Cook in hot pan. Best with dripping or chefade.
______________________________________ GREAT GRANDAD’S RECIPEINGREDIENTS:- ½ kilo whitebait
- ½ cup milk
- Salt and pepper
METHOD:- Cook in pot until white and eat on toast.
______________________________________ MRS EGGELING'S RECIPEINGREDIENTS:- ½ kilo whitebait
- 3 eggs (2 eggs for 250 g)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Shake black pepper
METHOD:- Using 2 bowls separate yokes from whites putting yolks in bowl with the bate and other ingredence and mix well.
- Using second bowl for whites, beat until firm or stiff and fold into the bate.
- Cook in a moderate or hot pan with 1 cm of butter.
- For best result don’t use more that ½ of bait as it takes too long to cook and the egg whites flatten.
- With frozen 'bait, don’t drain off liquid — just add hand full of flour into 'bait and mix well before folding in whites.
- If short on 'bait add extra egg.
Enjoy!______________________________________ WANGANUI RIVER CAMPERS' RECIPEINGREDIENTS:- 2 medium size eggs
- Salt and pepper
- Rice flour
METHOD:- Cook on hot skillet with a slice of butter.
______________________________________ WHITEBAIT SOUFFLE — from the 1946 “NZ Truth” Cookery Book.INGREDIENTS:- 1 Breakfast cup of milk
- 1 Tablespoon butter
- 2 eggs
- half a pint of whitebait
- 1 slice bread
- pepper and salt
METHOD:- Soak bread in milk, add butter and beat to a pulp.
- Then add egg yolks, pepper & salt.
- Lastly add whites beaten stiffly and pour into buttered dish.
- Bake 20 minutes in a hot oven.
______________________________________ WHITEBAIT OMELETTE — Di's recipe, from Pukeko Tearooms.INGREDIENTS:- 3 eggs
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 25 grams butter
- 1 cup whitebait
METHOD:- In a small bowl beat eggs and salt with fork.
- Heat butter in a medium fry pan.
- Pour in beaten eggs.
- Reduce heat slightly until omelette is half set, lifting the edges.
- While the top of the omelette is still liquid, spread the whitebait over it.
- Continue to cook until the egg is almost set.
- Season with salt.
- Remove the pan from the heat and leave the omelette to stand for about 2 minutes.
- Roll up the omelette, and place join downwards on the plate.
- Cut into 4 diagonal slices.
Serve hot or cold.
Serves 4.______________________________________ WHITEBAIT DEAUVILLE — from Pukeko Tearooms.INGREDIENTS:- ¼ cup whitebait
- 1 Tablespoon flour
- ¼ teaspoon saltpepper
- 25 grams butter
- lemon wedge
METHOD:- Drain the whitebait and place in a bowl.
- Sprinkle with flour, salt and pepper.
- Heat butter in a small frying pan.
- Add whitebait all at once and cook turning constantly for about 1 minute.
- Pile onto a warm plate, and serve with a lemon wedge.
Serves 1.______________________________________ WHITEBAIT FRITTERS — from Pukeko Tearooms.INGREDIENTS:- 1 egg
- 1 Tablespoon flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup whitebait
- 25 grams butter
- 1 Tablespoon oil
METHOD:- In a small bowl whisk the egg until frothy.
- Fold in the flour and salt.
- Add whitebait and stir to just combine.
- Heat butter and oil in a fry pan.
- Drop spoonfuls of whitebait into hot butter.
- When golden brown turn to cook second side.
- Serve hot.
Serves 3.______________________________________ TIPS:
• Thaw frozen whitebait in milk to give a good flavour.
• A touch of ground ginger with frozen 'bait gives a nice flavour.
TIPS FOR TASTE:
• Mint sauce, vinegar, lemon.______________________________________ www.westcoastwhitebaiters.co.nz
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:15:48 GMT 10
Whitebait learning the ropesWaikato Times | Saturday, 16 May 2009WAIKATO scientists have found some native fish can climb up ropes a discovery that could help save threatened species.
In what is believed to be a New Zealand first, Environment Waikato scientists have discovered that juvenile banded kokopu, a native whitebait species, can climb up a special type of polypropylene rope.
They hope the findings will go some way to overcoming resource consent barriers for farmers and help save some of the country's threatened native fish species.
In a lab experiment last November, scientists Bruno David, Kevin Collier and Mark Hamer found that juvenile fish could easily shimmy up half a metre of rope and use it to get through a replica culvert.
The furry ropes have loops and strands that fish leverage off as they wriggle up.
They are now conducting field trials to see if the fish can do the same thing in the natural environment in perched culverts.
Perched culverts hang above water level, blocking fish migration up rivers and streams.
"Fish need to be able to migrate up rivers as part of their life cycle so they can reach suitable adult breeding habitats," Dr David said.
"Unfortunately, even well installed culverts can end up blocking fish passage over time, because the water rushing through erodes away the land away the end of the culvert."
"This can leave the culvert hanging above the stream, creating a drop that fish just can't get past."
While the Resource Management Act required all stream structures to allow fish passage, Dr David said there were possibly hundreds of perched culverts restricting fish passage across the Waikato region.
"If the rope idea works, it could be a cost-effective alternative to fish ladders in steep catchments where native climbing species are found, saving money for farmers, roading companies, councils and private land owners."
Dr David said some juvenile native fish had the unique ability to climb by flattening out their bodies and wriggling up using their heads and fins.
But even that technique couldn't get them past a man-made structure like a perched culvert.
The scientists hope the rope will help the fish climb up to the culvert entrance and get past the lip. "Providing fish access through just one culvert could open up kilometres of habitat upstream."
The scientists have installed ropes in a perched culvert blocking an eel passage into Lake Harihari, south of Kawhia, and in a culvert blocking fish migration through a Coromandel stream.www.stuff.co.nz/waikato-times/news/2415973/Whitebait-learning-the-ropes
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:15:58 GMT 10
Recidivist whitebait offender finedNZPA | Wednesday, 27 May 2009A RICHMOND whitebaiter has been caught breaking the rules for a second time and is now $2000 poorer.
Harold Osmond, 71, had denied using over-sized whitebait fishing gear , but was found guilty in Nelson District Court last week.
In October last year a Department of Conservation (DOC) ranger spotted Osmond with a net and screens spanning the full width of Stringer Creek.
Regulations require two thirds of a channel to be left open.
DOC Motueka spokesman Gavin Udy said regulations were needed to sustain whitebait numbers and ensure everyone got their fair share.
"Enough whitebait needs to get upstream past nets to enable healthy native fish populations and good whitebait runs in future years."
Osmond was fined $1500 and ordered to pay costs of $500.
In 2007 Osmond pleaded guilty to the same charge and was docked $830 for his first offence.
"We will continue to put effort into compliance and enforcement with the whitebait fishing regulations when coming across blatant breaches," Mr Udy said.www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/2448260/Recidivist-whitebait-offender-fined
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:16:13 GMT 10
Planting helps whitebaitersBy SARAH FOY - Taranaki Daily News | Tuesday, 21 July 2009FUTURE PROOFING: From left, Urenui farmer Sue Stilwell, Taranaki Regional Council officer Ange Lenza and local farmer Evan Lobb plant new vegetation along the banks of the Hutiwai Stream. — CAMERON BURNELL/Taranaki Daily News.WHITEBAITERS and their tasty catch will benefit from new vegetation planted along the Hutiwai Stream at Tongaporutu.
Yesterday dozens of helpers turned soil and placed native vegetation along the stream to help restore the local habitat and encourage whitebait to continue to spawn in the stream and its tributaries.
The planting morning was organised by the Taranaki Tree Trust with the trees being funded by the Honda TreeFund.
"This area is popular with local whitebaiters who will be heading out with their nets again when the season begins on August 15," says Tree Trust co-ordinator Rachel Stewart. "By planting natives along the Hutiwai Stream we'll improve the health of the waterway and help ensure whitebait continue to spawn in the area and that there's plenty to be caught for generations to come," she says.
The project is one of many local initiatives to benefit from the Honda TreeFund, which distributes thousands of trees nationwide. Every new Honda sold earns a local area 13 new trees. The planting is administered through local and regional councils, or trusts administered by councils.
The Honda TreeFund is about supporting the local environment rather than emission offsetting, says Honda New Zealand managing director Graeme Seymour.
"Community planting days/projects like this encourage people to think about their environment and the part they play in either its deterioration or improvement."www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/2611467/Planting-helps-whitebaiters
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:16:24 GMT 10
‘Smithy’ set to close the netHawke's Bay Today | Thursday, 06 August 2009GETTING READY: Keith “Smithy” Smith with the equipment he hopes will get some good whitebait returns. — Photo: Hawke's Bay Today."HOW LONG is a piece of string?" one of the devoted characters of whitebaiting in the Bay, Keith "Smithy" Smith replied when asked how he thought the imminent whitebaiting season was going to stack up.
"It comes and it goes," the Napier 84-year-old said.
"It was good up until six or seven years ago but then it fell off. It's coming back a bit now though, and it wasn't too bad last season - there were a few around."
Nothing holds Smithy back from heading to the Tutaekuri River where he has fished for the little delicacies for more than 20 years.
Only having one arm (he lost his right arm in a motorcycle crash when he was a teenager) has never been an impediment.
Given that he has built a boat and a garage, piloted aircraft, driven cars and ridden specially adapted motorcycles, and has done all his concreting through the years, building a solid whitebaiting jetty and casting the nets is pretty straightforward really.
He took his first whitebaiting steps when he was just seven, in Westport where he was born.
"I'd go down with the folks."
Later he moved to Whangarei where he chased the whitebait, although there wasn't much of it in the far north.
He did a stint in the air force and after he came out headed south again, to Invercargill then Christchurch.
"I got some pretty good catches down there," he said.
After he married he and his bride headed for Palmerston North.
"Did some there and in Foxton — it wasn't bad."
Then the couple shifted to Wairoa where Smithy had work during the 1960s and he discovered the region to be a whitebait "Mecca."
"We got a lot of good whitebait up there," he said.
Shifting to Napier meant seeking out new spots, and he settled on a pozzie on the Tutaekuri River near Awatoto. The fishing has has been up and down, but reasonably kind to him.
This season he will be putting his stand up again for the August 15 opening day, but will likely share his "good equipment" and fish-finding nous with a whitebaiting mate who, he said, had "a really good spot" and was happy to share it.
There is an unwritten law among whitebaiters in that a bloke's spot is a bloke's spot — you don't edge in on it.
"Dunno how it'll go this year ... we'll have to wait and see."www.hawkesbaytoday.co.nz/local/news/smithy-set-to-close-the-net/3902450
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:16:43 GMT 10
Whitebaiting season starts on 15 AugustMedia Release - Department of Conservation | Monday, 10 August 2009NEW ZEALANDERS can again take up the much-loved Kiwi pastime of whitebaiting from Saturday 15 August when the whitebait fishing season starts around most of New Zealand.
The whitebait fishing season runs from 15 August to 30 November except for on the South Island’s West Coast where the season is from 01 September to 14 November.
Department of Conservation spokesman Gavin Udy said it was timely with the start of the whitebaiting season to remember that steps need to be taken now to sustain the whitebait fishery to ensure good runs in future years.
“Whitebait are the young of native fish and the future of whitebaiting is dependent on having sustainable native fish populations. The whitebait catch can include short jawed and giant kokopu which are threatened species."
“People can help sustain the whitebait fishery by abiding by the Whitebait Fishing Regulations, by not taking more than they need, and by helping to protect whitebait habitat and passage."
“The Whitebait Fishing Regulations are in place to protect the whitebait fishery and they also help everyone to get their fair share."
“The consequence of breaching the regulations can be prosecution and fines. A Richmond man has been ordered to pay in total more than $2800 in fines and court-related costs on two convictions for using whitebait fishing gear exceeding more than one-third of the width of a stream."
“DOC rangers will be patrolling waterways to check people are complying with the regulations but if people see anyone breaking the rules we ask them to let us know by calling the DOC emergency number, 0800 DOCHOT/0800 36 24 68."
“Whitebait need sufficient habitat to live and breed, including wetlands, swamps and bush-covered streams. They also need unimpeded access between the sea and their freshwater habitats."
“Whitebaiters are also reminded to Check, Clean, Dry whitebaiting gear when moving between or up waterways to prevent the spread of didymo algae and other aquatic pests."
“Any aquatic life caught in nets not wanted as part of the whitebait catch should be returned alive to the water. It can include mature or gutty whitebait, bullies, smelt, trout and the young of eels. It is a legal requirement to do this but these species are also an integral part of freshwater ecosystems.”______________________________________ Media contacts:
Gavin Udy DOC Motueka Biodiversity Programme Manager Phone +64 3 528 1810
Trish Grant DOC Nelson/Marlborough Communications Advisor Phone +64 3 546 3146www.doc.govt.nz/about-doc/news/media-releases/whitebaiting-season-starts-on-15-august Whitebait season set to start in South IslandThe Press | Monday, 11 August 2009WHITEBAITERS will gather along South Island streams and rivers from Saturday for the opening of the whitebait season.
Motueka Department of Conservation biodiversity programme manager Gavin Udy said rangers expected the South Island's waterways to be busy and would conduct regular patrols. Whitebaiters should not take more fish than they need, protect whitebait passage and habitat and check and clean and dry their gear when moving between waterways.
Aquatic life caught in nets and not part of the whitebait catch must be returned alive to the water. The season runs to the end of November, except on the West Coast, where it opens from the start of September to November 14.www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/2738325/Whitebait-season-set-to-start-in-South-Island Looking good for whitebait seasonBy MAIKE VAN DER HEIDE - The Marlborough Express | Tuesday, 11 August 2009THE NETS are being fixed and cleaned, the buckets checked for holes and the winter woollies prepared ready for dawn on the beach for Saturday's start of the whitebait season in Marlborough.
The season runs from August 15 to November 30, except for the West Coast where the season runs from September 01 to November 14.
Department of Conservation (DOC) South Marlborough community relations manager Colin Davis said conditions looked good for the start of the season.
Last year two massive storms swelled the region's creeks and rivers too much for good whitebaiting.
He said DOC staff would be out and about making sure whitebaiters followed the rules.
Whitebaiters have to be within 10 metres of their nets at all times so they cannot set a net and leave it there while they go home or to work.
Information on the rules would be available at sports outlets in Blenheim that sold whitebait gear.
DOC spokesman Gavin Udy said rules were in place to help sustain the fishery.
He encouraged fishers not to take more than they needed.
He said whitebait were the young of native fish and the future of whitebaiting depended on having sustainable native fish populations.
The whitebait catch can include short-jawed and giant kokopu which are threatened species, Mr Udy said.
Those who do not abide by the whitebait fishing regulations can face prosecution and fines.
Whitebaiters are also reminded to check, clean and dry whitebaiting gear when moving between or up waterways to prevent the spread of didymo algae and other aquatic pests.www.stuff.co.nz/marlborough-express/news/2740148/Looking-good-for-whitebait-season
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:17:02 GMT 10
Whitebaiters fume as poachers hit coastBy JARROD BOOKER - The New Zealand Herald | Friday, 14 August, 2009GETTING READY: Robert Harry (left) and son Nathan prepare their whitebait net for the start of the new season. — SIMON BAKER/NZ Herald.WHITEBAIT fanciers are eagerly awaiting the start of the new season tomorrow, but poachers have already been out trying to cash in on the public demand.
The delicacy, which has in the past brought fishermen to blows over the best fishing spots, can legally be caught from tomorrow in all parts of the country except the South Island's West Coast.
The season on the West Coast, considered the best region in the country for whitebaiting, starts a couple of weeks later, to try to conserve whitebait numbers. To the consternation of law-abiding whitebaiters on the coast, there have been reports of poachers over the last fortnight.
Jim Bushby, president of the West Coast Whitebaiters Association, said the poachers were often sophisticated, hiding nets in bush near rivers, and using lookouts and walkie talkies to alert them to the risk of being spotted.
"It's a pretty quick and slick operation. It doesn't take much [for them] to disappear into the bush," Mr Bushby said.
"One of the problems we have here is there is quite an opportunity for poachers to ship whitebait off the West Coast, pre-season ... to sell it over the hill [in Christchurch] ... and gain a premium price."
He said it had been going on for several years and the Department of Conservation (DoC) was well aware of it.
Mr Bushby said a helicopter had been used effectively to monitor the rivers and deter poachers.
A DoC West Coast spokesman, Ted Brennan, said jet boats, kayaks, and 4x4s were also used for enforcement.
"One useful means of combating poaching is for people to immediately report illegal incidents as they see these happening to the nearest DoC office so that prompt action can be taken," Mr Brennan said.
Mr Bushby expects the usual influx of outsiders to the West Coast to try their hand this season.
"I think it's the pristine water here. It's a beautiful environment ... and it's just the unique experience to be able to get out there on the riverbank and to catch your own feed of whitebait. And, of course, they do taste best if they are fresh."
THE RULES:- The whitebaiting season for most of New Zealand runs from August 15 to November 30.
- On the West Coast it is September 01 to November 14.
- Any whitebaiter who breaches the fishing regulations can be fined up to $5000.
www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10590694 Poised with white bated breathBy MICHAEL FORBES and SHIRLEY WHYTE - The Southland Times | Saturday, 15 August 2009READY AND ABLE: Ian McCracken at Te Wae Wae Bay, preparing for the whitebait season. — SHIRLEY WHYTE/The Southland Times.AFTER five average seasons of whitebaiting, Brett Pearce reckons he is owed a good one this year, but the Conservation Department is not as optimistic.
The Southland Whitebaiters Association president, like so many of his members, has spent the past three weeks picking his spot, cleaning out his hut, and fixing his net in the lead-up to whitebait season, which starts today.
Mr Pearce said between 700 and 800 keen fishermen, and women, would line riverbanks in Southland today.
Word among members was that whitebait numbers were good in traditionally popular river spots, such as the Mataura, Aparima, and Pourakino, he said.
"We've have five average years and these things move in cycles, so we're due for a good one. To be honest, I think we're owed one," he said.
However, DOC freshwater fish expert Jane Goodman said some species of whitebait were still under threat.
"Inanga are the most common species, but whitebaiters may also capture the young of giant and shortjaw kokopu, koaro, and banded kokopu depending on which river they fish in."
DOC staff had been returning to streams and rivers with historical records of adult whitebait (galaxiids) and finding they were no longer present, she said.
"Experts are very concerned about this trend and are endeavouring to document this decline and the reasons for it."
Water removal, pollution, wetland drainage, introduced pests, and destruction of stream-side vegetation all threatened the long-term survival of whitebait, Ms Goodman said.
However, whitebaiting added further pressure to the survival of these species if not carried out in a sustainable manner, she said.
Association member and Te Wae Wae farmer Ian McCracken was out setting up his nets on the Waiau River yesterday.
He had been whitebaiting for as long as he remember and knew the conditions best suited for a bumper season, he said.
"There should be no visible snow on the mountains which feed into the rivers. The sea should be flat and the river water should be warm and clear."
The season runs from today until November 30, except on the West Coast, where it runs from September 01 to November 14.
THE RULES:- It is illegal to fish with more than one net.
- Using excess gear such as screens and a net that is more than 6m long, fishing more than a third of the waterway, and fishing preseason are also illegal activities.
- People whitebaiting are also required to remain within 10m of their net.
- Offenders risk having their gear seized and a fine of up to $5000.
www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/news/2755035/Poised-with-white-bated-breath Whitebaiters urged to take care as season opensBy KATARINA FILIPE - The Timaru Herald | Saturday, 15 August 2009CAN'T WAIT: Donna Bennett of Timaru is all set for the whitebaiting season today. She has been whitebaiting for 63 years, mostly at Smithfield and on the West Coast. — JOHN BISSET/The Timaru Herald.WATER SAFETY NEW ZEALAND is urging people to be careful this whitebaiting season.
Although no whitebaiters drowned last year, general manager Matt Claridge said whenever there was a surge in activity around water, people needed to be cautious and aware of the risks of drowning.
The season kicks off around most of New Zealand today and ends on November 30 except for the West Coast where the season is from September 01 to November 14.
Mr Claridge reminded people to let someone know where they would be and how long they would take, dress appropriately and ensure the area of the river was one they could safely access.
Conservation Department biodiversity ranger Steve Harraway said he had seen people get knocked off their feet, but there hadn't been a drowning in South Canterbury in recent years.
A lifejacket was the safest option in case people got swept out in the surf, he said.
He reminded whitebaiters that steps needed to be taken now to sustain the fishery for future years.
DOC rangers will be patrolling waterways to check people were complying with the regulations. If people caught anyone breaking the rules, they should call the department's emergency number 0800 DOCHOT (0800 362 468).
Whitebaiters also needed to check, clean and dry whitebaiting gear when moving between or up waterways to prevent the spread of didymo algae and other aquatic pests.
Any aquatic life caught in nets that was not wanted as part of the whitebait catch should be returned alive to the water, Mr Harraway said.
That included mature or gutty whitebait, bullies, smelt, trout and the young of eels.
People could help sustain the whitebait fishery by abiding by the Whitebait Fishing Regulations, by not taking more than they need, and by helping to protect whitebait habitat and passage.
The consequence of breaching the regulations can be prosecution and fines.
In the past two years, a Richmond man had been ordered to pay more than $2800 in fines and court-related costs in two convictions for using whitebait fishing gear exceeding more than one-third of the width of a stream.
Whitebait needed enough habitat to live and breed, including wetlands and bush-covered streams.www.stuff.co.nz/timaru-herald/news/2755092/Whitebaiters-urged-to-take-care-as-season-opens Whitebait in declineBy MATT RILKOFF - Taranaki Daily News | Saturday, 15 August 2009WHITEBAIT stand prices remain high even as the numbers of the little fish seem to decline and the Department of Conservation wants catches limited.
The whitebait season opens today with a conservation request from the department. DOC staff monitoring streams and rivers with historical records of adult whitebait had found the tasty fish were no longer present in many of those waterways.
DOC freshwater fish expert Jane Goodman said water removal, pollution, wetland drainage, introduced pests and destruction of stream-side vegetation all threatened the long-term survival of whitebait species.
"Inanga are the most common species, but whitebaiters may also capture the young of giant kokopu, shortjaw kokopu, koaro and banded kokopu depending on which river they are fishing in. Giant kokopu and shortjaw kokopu are threatened species," she said.
Earlier this month whitebait stands on the Mokau and Awakino rivers were advertised for prices ranging between $4000-$10,000.
Stands cost, on average, about $500 to build and had been available for $1000 just a few years ago.www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/2755157/Whitebait-in-decline Whitebait in Clutha run unusually earlyBy REBECCA FOX - Otago Daily Times | Saturday, 15 August 2009WHITEBAIT are running in the Clutha River, an unusual occurrence for Otago, which usually experiences a slow start to the whitebaiting season, the Department of Conservation says.
The whitebait season begins today around the country except for the South Island West Coast, where the season begins on September 01.
DOC freshwater ranger Pete Ravenscroft said there had been reports of shoals of whitebait 10m long running in the lower Clutha in the past month, attracting illegal whitebaiters, although none had been apprehended.
"It's unusual this early on. Fingers crossed, it means a good season."
Rivers were looking good, except for the Taieri, which was discoloured.
Whitebait generally did not like running up dirty rivers, he said.
Whitebait numbers had been declining during the past five years since the last good season, he said.
All but one species of whitebait was "at risk", so smarter management of their habitats was needed especially on larger waterways like the Taieri and Clutha rivers.
DOC freshwater fish specialist Jane Goodman said experts had been returning to streams and rivers with historical records of adult whitebait [galaxiids] and finding that they were no longer present.
"Experts are very concerned about this trend and are endeavouring to document this decline and the reasons for it."
Inanga were the most common species, but whitebaiters might also capture the young of giant kokopu and shortjaw kokopu, which are threatened, or the koaro and banded kokopu.
Water removal, pollution, wetland drainage, introduced pests and destruction of stream-side vegetation were some of the issues that threatened the long-term survival of whitebait species.
DOC reminded whitebaiters to be aware of the regulations and to be within 10m of their gear at all times and to check, clean and dry their gear when moving between or up waterways, to prevent the spread of didymo algae and other aquatic pests.
"Generally speaking, whitebaiters observe the regulations that help keep a healthy fishery, but we all have to be aware of contaminated whitebaiting gear affecting other streams."www.odt.co.nz/the-regions/otago/69881/whitebait-clutha-run-unusually-early
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:17:13 GMT 10
Whitebaiter fritters his days awayThe Dominion Post | Monday, 17 August 2009WHITEBAITING HEAVEN: Keith Thompson by the Hutt River, just above the Ewen Bridge. — PHIL REID/The Dominion Post.KEITH THOMPSON jokes that his wife is a whitebaiter's widow, but is just thankful she understands his passion for the tiny delicacy.
He was one of hundreds of whitebaiters who plunged their nets into rivers during the season's opening weekend, hoping for a bumper season.
Mr Thompson, 56, found a good spot at Ewen Bridge along the Hutt River yesterday and caught about 500 grams in a 10-hour stint.
"It's not a bad start to the season. Hopefully there will be plenty more to come."
He reckons he will be able to whip up about 20 patties from his catch. His recipe is as basic as they come.
"You do as little a possible. Two eggs, a bit of salt and pepper and that's it. Otherwise you just swamp all the taste."A BEAUTIFUL SPOT: Keith Thompson sets up on the Hutt River where he says he would happily sit for 12 hours for a handful of whitebait. — PHIL REID/The Dominion Post.THE DAY'S TAKINGS: Keith Thompson's catch should be good for a few fritters. — PHIL REID/The Dominion Post.WHITEBAITER: Keith Thompson's car number plate says it all. — PHIL REID/The Dominion Post.He has been dipping his net in the water since he was 11 years old and his passion is not fading.
"I can't wait till I retire so I can do this for two months solid. It's one of these things that when you get a decent catch it will keep you coming back for years. It's a beautiful spot out here. The world is going by and I am sitting here quietly watching it. I can sit here quite happily for 12 hours and only get a dozen whitebait.
"I work in an office in Lambton Quay, working with people all day long with their every need and want. At the weekend I can sit down at the river and relax. It's lovely and peaceful."
He aims to go whitebaiting at least once a weekend during the season and is pleased his wife understands. "My wife's a whitebait widow, she knows that and thankfully she just gets used to it.
"I've got some other friends who fish on the river and their wives have the same understanding."
The whitebaiting season closes on November 30.www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/wellington/2757415/Whitebaiter-fritters-his-days-away Foodbasket that turned into oozeThe Dominion Post | Monday, 17 August 2009SAD STATE: Te Rira Puketapu checks the condition of his old whitebaiting haunt, the Waiwhetu Stream. — CRAIG SIMCOX/The Dominion Post.TWO KILOS of whitebait in half a day was once a regular catch for Te Rira Puketapu but contaminate-laden "Waiwhetu ooze" in his favourite stream put a stop to that long ago.
Mr Puketapu, 70, a former Lower Hutt deputy mayor, spent his childhood catching and eating fresh water crayfish, eels and whitebait from the stream.
But decades of neglect including sewage overflows and unregulated discharges containing high levels of lead, copper, arsenic, zinc, and mercury from nearby factories has polluted everything living in the stream.
"In the 1940s and 50s you could catch a couple of kilos of whitebait in half a day without any trouble."
He hasn't collected whitebait from the stream in years and he does not plan to start again. The whitebait season opened on Saturday. "You don't even bother now because you know it is hopeless and unsafe."
Greater Wellington regional council will start a $7 million cleanup project in October of the worst industrial discharge site between Bell Rd and the Seaview Rd bridge.
"We are removing what we call the Waiwhetu ooze," project manager John Eyles said.
"It varies in thickness between 300 millimetres and 1.5 metres thick. It is black, oily, smells like a combination of petrol and sulphur and is full of heavy metals and pesticides."
The impending clean up has not stopped Hutt City Council applying for resource consent for the next 25 years to discharge screened wastewater into the stream from two pumping stations during periods of heavy rainfall.
Mr Puketapu, on behalf of Te Atiawa iwi, has opposed the application because he wants the consent to span just five years. He has also called for the council to upgrade its sewage pumping network which iwi consider inadequate.PAST TIME: In this photo from several decades ago a man collects what is believed to be a type of African water lilly from the stream.Capacity planning manager Robert McCrone, who heads the consent process for the city council, said pumps in the two stations in the area were no more than 10 years old.
He said recent sewage system upgrades in Lower Hutt had made it the most "robust infrastructure" in New Zealand but complete elimination of contaminants into the stream was impossible.
"It is part of the urban environment and these things happen wherever there is wastewater networking around the country.
"The difference with Waiwhetu is that the community said our stream is the most polluted in New Zealand and it is unacceptable."
About five weeks ago Greater Wellington started to deepen and widen the stream south of Seaview Road.
The $7m flood protection programme would increase water flow capacity by more than 50 per cent when completed late next year.www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/wellington/2757254/Foodbasket-that-turned-into-ooze Mokau whitebait icon stolenBy RYAN EVANS - Taranaki Daily News | Monday, 17 August 2009A DOWN-ON-LUCK whitebaiter is thought to be behind a bizarre theft of the delicacy in Mokau at the weekend.
But the fritters were unlikely to have been very satisfying the stolen whitebait are made of driftwood and are each about a foot long.
Whitebait Inn owners Jenny and Graham Marsden were left gobsmacked after thieves took off with 18 decorative whitebait, which have adorned the cafe's roof for more than eight years.
"Somebody's been fishing out of season," Mrs Marsden said on Saturday.
The Marsdens discovered the theft on Friday night, the day before the season opened on Saturday.
Mr Marsden said he thought it was probably one or two guys travelling through town who may have had a few drinks under their belts.
"The guy up there has been waiting more than eight years for those whitebait," he said. "People driving past now might think he's finally got them."
He said the previous owners of the inn had put the whitebait and fisherman on the roof.
They were made of carved and painted driftwood and held on the roof with silicon gel.
Mrs Marsden said they would definitely be making some more and getting them back up on the roof.
"We think it's quite sad," she said.
"You'd be amazed at how often they get photographed, they are a real Mokau icon, like the Big Carrot (in Ohakune).
The thief's 18 whitebait haul wasn't too bad on a typically slow start to the whitebait season.
Rumours were circulating at the Whitebait Inn of a two-pound catch but evidence was thin on the ground.
Val Welch comes to Mokau to whitebait from Waihi Beach every year.
She put her net in the water about 10am on Saturday but by 3pm was back in town with a grand tally of three.
Down on the river, patient fishermen were still waiting for the incoming tide.
Opunake father and son Bill and Graham Coombe had their net in the water as they chewed the fat on their stand.
They pulled the net up for a photo but were disappointed with a catch consisting of one inanga and some twigs.
"I think the whitebait are winning," Mr Coombe senior said.
His son was more optimistic. "You just never know," he said. "You can pick it up now and have 4kg in there and it makes your day. Or you can pick it up six times and have nothing."
Yesterday, the Taranaki Daily News rang the Awakino Hotel to see if things had picked up overnight but barman Mike Rooney said things were pretty quiet.
The biggest catch he had heard of was threequarters of a kilogram, "but that was the only one," he said.
Word on the river was that the whitebait would start arriving tomorrow or Wednesday when the tide conditions came right, he said.www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/2757554/Mokau-whitebait-icon-stolen Whitebait for tea tonight — hopefully!By VICKI PRICE - Taranaki Daily News | Monday, 17 August 2009LONG-TIMER: Harry Page has been white- baiting in this spot for about 20 years."Chance is what every fisher lives with. Someone in front of you catches the shoal. You catch nothing. Or vice versa. And that excitement. Oh my! I've sat on the river bank, my buckets full, and everyone else has pulled in their nets, their buckets full, too. And the fish were still streaming in — every so often an underwater predator sends them skipping to the surface — golden! And the feeling — better than the best champagne."SO WRITES Keri Hulme ending her foreword in a new book, Whitebaiters Never Lie. The book is the result of three years' work by photographers Anita Peters and Murray Hedwig, who travelled the country talking with whitebaiters and learning about the unwritten rules around this fabled New Zealand pastime.
Mokau, Awakau and Onaero Rivers were each visited in Taranaki and local baiters photographed. On Mokau, 84-year-old Harry Page has been whitebaiting at the same pozzie for about 20 years and says there were no other stands when he first came to the river. Now there is one every 30 metres or so and most of these have a shelter to go with it.
Another long-time baiter, Brick, first came up the Mokau in 1938 in the cream boat. He enjoys the scenery as much as the sport. "See that kowhai over there? There's half a dozen tuis in there. Look at them: they're just going mad! I mean, that's the beauty of the place."
Tales continue between the photos. Mokau historian Ian Whittaker says of the huge kahikatea trees standing sentinel over the river: "These scraggy big kahikatea trees — they've really got bony knees on them, they're very very old." He says that the Maori of old are said to have buried their dead in the tops of the trees, because the ground was too wet around the pa. The trees are estimated to be between 700 and 1000 years old and are considered most sacred.
Early Maori caught whitebait, or inanga, in finely woven flax nets using diversions made in the riverbed. Catches were dried over a fire or in the sun for storage if they weren't eaten freshly steamed from a hangi. After European settlement, inanga also became a form of trade.
After bemoaning the lack of Christmas celebrations in Inglewood "compared with those of the ‘olden times’ when Inglewood was young", a correspondent to the Taranaki Herald in January 1883 went on to say how Waitara had recently carried on a good trade with the inland town in fish.
"Good schnappers have realised about one shilling each, and whitebait, which is a delicious little fish — quite equal to the English — has been sold usually at sixpence per pint."
Soon Pakeha were at it, too, fashioning nets themselves made in the Maori design but using supplejack vines instead or muslin cloth normally used for curtains. Timbermill workers' wives fished for whitebait to supplement the family diet.
But this new water-based sport wasn't without its dangers. There were occasional drownings reported of those who had gone to the water's edge to try their luck and didn't return. In 1907, fears were held for a Bell Block youth presumed drowned after a whitebaiting foray on the Mangati Stream bank. Fifteen-year-old James Dustow, son of a well-known settler in the area, had headed off up the stream, about 7km along the coast from the Waiwhakaiho River. When he didn't return that evening, a search revealed only James' boots, a catch of whitebait and his net.
It was known that James liked to jump this part of the stream, which was relatively narrow but fast moving, especially when in flood, as it was on this day. It was presumed he had been jumping back and forth, fell in and was swept away. The settlers turned out in force to help in the search, and on October 10, the body was found at the junction of the Mangaraka and Waiongona streams.
Local eateries advertised whitebait on their menus, like the Supper, Refreshment and Oyster Saloon, (next to Newton King's Auction Mart) that served hot meals from 7am until midnight. Customers could rely on cleanliness and civility, its 1907 ad said, with "best cooking". The eatery supplied fresh oysters, smoked fish and whitebait and, if you needed it, was also the agent for Prof. McLeans Rheumatic Cure.
Whitebait canning factories began to sprout up around New Zealand and flying strips were carved out of the bush so that planes could land in more remote areas where large volumes of bait were being caught to transport it to the main centres — a big improvement on the pack-horse days. When refrigeration came along in the 1950s, however, the canning industry was brought to a close.
Conservation of the region's whitebait was becoming a concern in the early 1900s. Large amounts were still being caught, and was even sometimes used as manure on gardens. There was an attempt to export them, but a report in 1895 said: "The shipments of New Zealand eels and whitebait were worthless. The whitebait were considered too large, and the eels coarse."
The Acclimatisation Society at its 1907 conference suggested a fee be paid by white baiters of £25/0s/6d per five gallons of the fish caught as a conservation measure.
Say the authors of Whitebaiters Never Lie, "Sustaining this activity is entirely dependant on our recognition of its vulnerability from loss of habitat and over-fishing; despite glum predictions by many baiters that the species is fast dying out, if we act to preserve the quality of our waterways and the stocks of fish in them, this iconic and unique culture does not need to become a thing of the past."References:
• Whitebaiters Never Lie, by Anita Peters & Murray Hedwig.
• Taranaki Herald — January 08, 1883; June 03, 1895; March 11, 1904; July 25, 1907, September 30, 1907, October 10, 1907.www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/features/2755467/Whitebait-for-tea-tonight-hopefully
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:17:24 GMT 10
Whitebaiters' batter well-mixedBy SHANE COWLISHAW - The Southland Times | Monday, 17 August 2009OPTIMIST: Whitebaiter Roger Findlay checking his net on the lower Aparima River yesterday. — JOHN HAWKINS/The Southland Times.THE START of the whitebait season has provided mixed batter for fisherman, depending on how many of the tiny fish they want to put in a patty.
The whitebait season kicked off on Saturday and runs until November 30.
Southland Whitebaiters Association president Brett Pearce, speaking from his spot on the Mataura River yesterday, said an increased catch had come as a relief after five lacklustre years.
Last year he had walked away from opening weekend with only 100g but Saturday had netted him five times that already, he said.
"I think everybody got a feed ... no signs of big catches but everyone went home with something and that's important for an opening weekend," Mr Pearce said.
But fisherman Alister Hamilton, staked out on the lower Aparima River, said this year's opening weekend had been quieter than the previous one.
Mr Hamilton had caught about 100g on Saturday and expected another 100g yesterday but that paled in comparison to the 1.4kg he pulled in last year.
The low catch had not put him off however, as on a perfect day there was nothing better than being a whitebaiter, he said. "You need to be a wishful thinker when you're a whitebaiter."www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/news/2757576/Whitebaiters-batter-well-mixed Rescuer has whale of a whitebait taleBy IAN STEWARD - The Press | Monday, 17 August 2009BIG CATCH: Paul Davidson netted more than whitebait on Saturday. He came to the aid of a driver who ended up in the Avon River in Christchurch. — DEAN KOZANIC/The Press.A CHRISTCHURCH whitebaiter camped beside the Avon River for the first day of the season ended up netting more than he bargained for when a car crashed into the water next to his spot.
Paul Davidson, 52, staked his spot outside Avonside Girls' High School at 2am on Saturday.
Davidson said he was "hyped up" about the season, but after wrapping up in a blanket he soon drifted off to sleep.
At 4.30am, he woke to the sound of a car speeding towards him down Linwood Avenue.
"I thought ‘this car's not going to stop’. I heard this bang and the lights of the car just flew through the air and dropped."
The car missed two large trees and landed in the river.
Davidson dialled emergency services and checked on the car's driver — he had climbed out of a window and was sitting on the roof of the car.
When the Fire Service arrived, the driver fell into the river and a fireman jumped in and dragged him out, Davidson said.
Luckily, the excitement did not deter the whitebait. Davidson caught 450 grams of the delicacy.
"A car's not going to stop them."
He returned to the site yesterday and caught another 450g.
In the same spot, at the same time last year, a friend had spent 12 hours fishing and had caught one whitebait, he said.
Davidson, who has been whitebaiting for five years, predicted this year was going to be a good season because of the warmer temperatures.
Despite the high prices fetched by whitebait, Davidson said he gave his catch away to friends and neighbours and only fished because he enjoyed it.
"People don't realise the enjoyment you get out of it. I meet a lot of nice people, and the occasional bad driver," he said.www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/christchurch/2757395/Rescuer-has-whale-of-a-whitebait-tale Slow start puts whitebait off menuBy MAIKE VAN DER HEIDE - The Marlborough Express | Monday, 17 August 2009WITH clear water running down the rivers, pleasantly mild temperatures and the fact that it was a Saturday, opening day of this year's whitebait season was looking very promising indeed.
Shame, then, that someone forgot to tell the whitebait.
Rain did not deter plenty of diehard whitebaiters from gathering at dawn alongside Blenheim's waterways, but it seemed pancakes, not patties, would be on most people's breakfast table.
Parked alongside the Wairau Diversion in a spot once favoured by his father, Deon Pope said he saw a small shoal of whitebait pass by as he was setting up his gear about 6.30am. Sadly, by the time his scoop net was ready to go, the bait had disappeared and no more followed.
Mr Pope said he was fishing from the exact spot his dad used to favour, underneath the power lines. Mr Pope said these days his father preferred to hunt for more substantial prey wild pigs.
Mr Pope said he had been whitebaiting in Marlborough since he was a child, but the fishing was not as good these days.
"Back then we'd get two pound a day, and now we get nothing," he said.
Sheltered from the rain in his caravan overlooking the river, Blenheim man Errol Tombs said it was too early to see how the season would go, but hoped it would be better than last year, which began with dirty, swollen rivers after two huge winter storms. "I might have had 10 pound for the season. The season before I was catching that much a day," Mr Tombs grinned.
Though the weather this year was better, Mr Tombs wondered if the Diversion's water level was high enough for good fishing after a bank was built upstream in July to increase the flow into the lower Wairau River. The 1.9-metre-high bank was built near Tuamarina in July, cutting off the river flow to the Wairau Diversion by 80 per cent.www.stuff.co.nz/marlborough-express/news/2759017/Slow-start-puts-whitebait-off-menu
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:17:34 GMT 10
Whitebaiters cautionedWairarapa Times-Age | Monday, 17 August 2009WET WET WET: North of Wairarapa in Hawke's Bay, dismal weather greeted this whitebaiter on the Ngaruroro River for the start of the season. — Photo: Hawke's Bay Today.WHITEBAITERS making tracks for the Wairarapa coastline this season should be sure they're not too deep or damaging, warns Greater Wellington Regional Council.
The season runs from now until November 30 and taking whitebait is permitted from 5am to 8pm, or from 6am to 9pm during daylight saving.
"The whitebaiting season sees an increase of people driving four-wheel-drive and other off-road vehicles through fragile dune and wetland ecosystems," environmental protection leader Nic Conland said, noting that often drivers show "not much thought for the consequences".
Driving is forbidden on the Castlepoint foreshore or the Riversdale foreshore and carries a $500 fine. "These areas contain important ecological values and vital habitat for coastal and estuarine wildlife," Mr Conland said.
He says the start of the season is also a reminder the five species which make up the whitebait run — koaro, inanga, shortjaw kokopu, giant kokopu and banded kokopu — are all in decline because of river deterioration.
Shortjaw kokopu and giant kokopu are on the threatened species list.
Reasons for the decline include clearance of native forest and the vegetation along riverbanks where whitebait spawn, wetland drainage and structures in streams such as dams.
Dams stop fish migrating between rivers and the sea, which in most cases means they can't reproduce.
Agricultural land use and urban subdivision have also intensified, bringing more pollutants, sediment and nutrients to rivers and streams, and affecting water quality and clarity.
"While floods and slips can cause natural turbidity during storms, construction activities requiring earthworks can cause rivers and streams to be muddy for much longer periods," Mr Conland said.
This essentially discourages fish from choosing these streams and causes populations to decline.
Mr Conland says Greater Wellington recommends companies and contractors do major earthworks outside the whitebait season.
Earthworks resource consents place stringent controls on any works in or near streams.www.times-age.co.nz/local/news/whitebaiters-cautioned/3902879 Baiters off to a slow startBy LIN FERGUSON - Wanganui Chronicle | Monday, 17 August 2009KEEN AS: Even though there was a huge dump of pollen across the water of the Matarawa Stream, Rex Moore was in for a few hours. — Photo: Wanganui Chronicle.GETTING bogged down and dirty was Wanganui whitebaiter Rex Moore at Matarawa stream in Kowhai Park yesterday.
With incoming tide slowly rolling in, Mr Moore and a few other hardy chaps were out on the slimy banks under dripping foliage with their nets immersed, all hoping for a catch.
“It’s my first time out this season — it’s a good way to spend a few hours. I work 6 days a week, so Sunday is it for me it’s the only time I can come down and have a go.
The whitebaiting season began at most of the country's estuaries an Saturday tomorrow amidst warnings from the Department of Conservation that whitebaiting was putting further pressure on the country's fragile native fish populations.
Streams and rivers which historically had flourishing numbers of the juvenile fish now contained none at all because of such factors as pollution, wetland drainage, introduced pests and unsustainable fishing methods, DOC said.
It was important to clean and dry all equipment before moving up or between waterways to prevent the spread of the destructive didymo algae, and to stay within 10 metres of your equipment at all times to ensure nets are not left unattended, DOC said.
DOC freshwater fish expert Jane Goodman said rules were in place to help sustain the fishery and asked fishers not to take more than they needed.
"Generally speaking, whitebaiters observe the regulations that help keep a healthy fishery but we all have to be aware of contaminated whitebaiting gear affecting other streams," she said.
"If each stream is treated as if it is contaminated and people check, clean and dry their gear between streams, we can reduce the potential threat and retain a sustainable fishery for future generations.www.wanganuichronicle.co.nz/local/news/baiters-off-to-a-slow-start/3902855 Successful season start for Clutha whitebaitersBy REBECCA FOX - Otago Daily Times | Monday, 17 August 2009WHITEBAITERS had a successful start to the season on the Clutha River but river banks in the rest of the region were mostly empty.
The whitebait season began on Saturday with Clutha River whitebaiters catching about 250g to 450g, which was not "too bad a start to the season", Department of Conservation freshwater ranger Pete Ravenscroft said.
"It's a promising start but it is impossible to predict."
Traditionally, Otago whitebaiters did not catch anything for about the first three weeks of the season.
Cooler weather and the unlikely chance of catching whitebait probably kept many people away from the river bank on opening day, he said.www.odt.co.nz/the-regions/south-otago/70033/successful-season-start-clutha-whitebaiters
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:17:56 GMT 10
Illegally caught whitebait could be for sale in ChristchurchBy GILES BROWN - The Press | Tuesday, 18 August 2009WEST COAST whitebait may already be on sale in Christchurch markets, with reports of pre-season poaching.
West Coast Whitebaiters Association vice-president Brian McCarthy said every year poachers took whitebait from Coast rivers before September 01.
He had already had "secondhand" reports of poaching this year.
"Poaching is part of life for some people," he said.
"Whitebait on the Christchurch market today will be about $50 to $100 a kilogram.
"I could go and catch 20kg or 30kg today and that's a couple of thousand dollars.
"The temptation is too much for some people."
Department of Conservation (DOC) Buller biodiversity programme manager Martin Abel said staff found one illegal net in the Buller River yesterday.
"It did have whitebait in it, but with no-one attached, and we are aware of, and have been monitoring, at least two other locations," he said.
The focus was on rivers around Westport, although there had been reports of poaching further north on the Ngakawau, he said.
DOC's Hokitika-based community relations spokesman, Ted Brennan, said poachers faced a fine of up to $5000 and the loss of their gear.
"The most effective means of combating poaching is for people seeing this activity to immediately report it to the nearest DOC office to enable prompt action to be taken," he said.www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/christchurch/2761278/Illegally-caught-whitebait-could-be-for-sale-in-Christchurch Bad weather hits start of whitebaiting seasonBy CARLY UDY - The New Zealand Herald | Tuesday, 18 August 2009DELICACY: A haul of whitebait. — Photo: ALAN GIBSON.THE RAIN and the wind blew, but nothing was going to stop Neil James from dunking his net into the cool waters of the Wairoa River on Saturday — for the opening of the whitebait season.
Wrapped in his winter woollies, the 53-year-old Te Puna orchardist, said it had been a disappointing start to a much-anticipated event, and blamed the weather for his small catch, which he wouldn't disclose, joking it would be "kind of embarrassing to even print".
Heavy rain on Friday night meant his usual hunting ground — the Wairoa River — was a muddy mass.
"It was dirty and they [whitebait] really don't like that. There were logs and rubbish coming down ... discolouration of the water is a no-no with them."
In anticipation of a slow start, he hit the banks of the river at 8.30am, when in previous years, he's been up as early as 4am.
There were fewer whitebaiters out enjoying opening morning — maybe because of the weather — but die-hard fans weren't deterred.
"I look forward to the season every year, it's quite exciting leading up to the time it's going to happen. I was totally surprised at the small number of people there, but it was raining and blowing."
Mr James said whitebaiting was a hobby that required patience and was "a bit like a lot of fish stories", in that if you don't put in the time, you won't get the catch.
Traditionally, the fishing starts slowly and improves throughout the spring.
Mr James spent three hours whitebaiting on Saturday but said it wasn't uncommon for him to spend more than half a day.
A keen fisherman also, he owns two boats, and said he had been a whitebaiter for the past 30 years, spending 20 of those along the banks of the Wairoa.
He whitebaits mostly on his own, and has been known to try his luck at Matata also.
"I never miss it. My parents did it at Opunake in Taranaki, and even the old uncles did it down there. As I got older I started doing it myself."
Mr James said he would be out enjoying this year's season whenever he got time.
Department of Conservation staff will patrol whitebaiting sites to check that people are abiding by the rules.
The regulations include using only one whitebait net at a time, to stay within 10m of the net, and the net should not exceed more than one-third of the water channel width.
Fines of up to $5000 can be imposed on people who breach regulations.
Whitebaiters are being reminded to clean nets and other gear between waterways to prevent spreading didymo and other aquatic pests.
The whitebaiting season finishes on November 30. Fishing is permitted between 5am and 8pm or between 6am and 9pm during daylight savings.• News story compiled with the Bay Of Plenty Times.www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=10591552 Whitebait season already over for someBy HINERANGI VAIMOSO - Hawke's Bay Today | Tuesday, 18 August 2009THE whitebaiting season was over before it began for a group of fishermen caught setting nets at least a week before the official start to the season.
Hawke's Bay Department of Conservation ranger Hans Rook said the new nets were found set and abandoned on a Hawke's Bay river more than a week ago, preventing the build-up of breeding stock.
"These people had put down their nets and buggered off which is just so disappointing after all the hard work you put in to prepare for the season," Mr Rook said.
He said between DOC, Hawke's Bay Regional Council, court-ordered community service workers and volunteers, adequate steps had been taken to ensure whitebait would be abundant all season. "(Whitebaiters) are a pretty neat bunch of people but there are a few who ruin it for everyone else."
The men's nets were seized by DOC and would be sold at a government department auction.
Saturday marked a dismal start to the season due to high water levels and rough seas.
While riverbanks would usually be sprinkled with avid whitebaiters at this time of year, none could be seen at the regular hotspots between Napier, Hastings and Haumoana yesterday morning.
Mr Rook said the number of fishermen and whitebait would increase as the weather improved.
He said DOC rangers would frequent the banks to ensure people were following regulations.
Whitebaiters are required to stay within 10 metres of their gear at all times, preventing them from setting a net and leaving it unattended.
People were also encouraged to only take as much as they needed.
Water removal, pollution, wetland drainage, introduced pests and the destruction of stream-side vegetation were some of the issues that threatened the long-term survival of whitebait species.www.hawkesbaytoday.co.nz/local/news/whitebait-season-already-over-for-some/3902986
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:18:07 GMT 10
Baiters' nets seized in weekend operationBy JARED MORGAN - The Southland Times | Tuesday, 18 August 2009NETS were seized from five whitebaiters in Western Southland waterways in a combined police and Department of Conservation compliance sting at the weekend.
And police are putting whitebaiters on notice, promising compliance operations will be continuing throughout the four-month season.
Senior Sergeant Richard McPhail, of Winton, said all of the nets forfeited were for breaches against the Whitebait Regulations 1994. The operation had been "overt" with Western Southland police and three DOC compliance officers on foot patrol at popular whitebaiting spots on Saturday and Sunday, Mr McPhail said.
Those spots included the Waimatuku River, Waiau River mouth and other waterways around Riverton, he said.
Police would be watching hotspots throughout the season, particularly the Waiau River, which in past years had been the scene of tense standoffs as whitebaiters fought over turf.
"People that are whitebaiting can expect to see police," Mr McPhail said.
"We want them to be able to enjoy whitebait season without fearing other users on the river."
DOC handled any potential prosecutions for breaches of the whitebait regulations, with offenders facing a fine up to $5000, he said. The whitebaiting season runs until November 30.www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/news/2761419/Baiters-nets-seized-in-weekend-operation Plea to go easy on whitebait stocksThe Marlborough Express | Wednesday, 19 August 2009THE whitebait season comes with a reminder to take steps to ensure the fishery continues to thrive for years to come.
Department of Conservation spokesman Gavin Udy said as the season began it was a timely reminder to be responsible.
"Whitebait are the young of native fish and the future of whitebaiting is dependent on having sustainable native fish populations," he said.
"People can help sustain the whitebait fishery by abiding by the regulations, by not taking more than they need, and by helping to protect whitebait habitat and passage."
Mr Udy said the regulations were in place not only to protect the whitebait fishery but also to help everyone to get their fair share.
DOC rangers would be patrolling waterways to check people were complying with the regulations but he said if people saw anyone breaking the rules they should alert DOC by calling the emergency number, 0800 DOCHOT or 0800 36 24 68.
Whitebaiters are also reminded to check, clean and dry whitebaiting gear when moving between or up waterways to prevent the spread of didymo algae and other aquatic pests.www.stuff.co.nz/marlborough-express/news/kaikoura/2767149/Plea-to-go-easy-on-whitebait-stocks
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:18:19 GMT 10
Whitebaiters intimidatedBy VIV LOGIE - The Greymouth Star | Thursday, 20 August 2009INTIMIDATION: The offending sign. — Photo: The Greymouth Star.THE West Coast whitebait season has turned ugly before it has even opened.
The old Greymouth wharf, above the coveted ‘Big Rock’ fishing spot, has sprouted a sign with a nasty tone: “If U value your life as much as we value this fishing spot, then f**k off.”
Alerted to the sign today, the council said it would be pulled down.
West Coast police area commander Inspector John Canning said today no one had the right to threaten others or try to enforce a monopoly on the riverside.
“Firstly, it is a public place and they cannot take over a public spot.”
He said if police found the people responsible for erecting the sign they would be “having a chat” to them.
The wording was clearly intended to intimidate, Mr Canning said.
“This type of behaviour is not acceptable and I would advise whoever put the sign up to take it down.”
Grey District Council chief executive officer Paul Pretorius said that as the sign was on port property he would get his staff to check it out.
“It will have to come down, and it will be removed today.”
The season opens on September 01.www.greystar.co.nz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3635&Itemid=43 Contractors Move a River for WhitebaitersPress Release - Taylors Contracting Company | Friday, 21 August 2009ENGINEERING and earthmoving company Taylors Contracting has been tasked with moving a river twice as part of a major bridge re-building project on the South Island’s West Coast — but the deadline has been determined by whitebait season.
The joint KiwiRail and NZ Transport Agency project to reconstruct the 120 year old Arahura road/rail bridge began 18 months ago. The new bridge includes a two lane road for State Highway 6 between Hokitika and Greymouth and separates the rail line from the road.
HEB Structures are the main contractors for the job, with Taylors subcontracted for the river work. This involved constructing gravel guide bank and rock protections to enable abutments and pier heads to be built.
Taylors Contracting Project Manager Neil McKay says they first shifted the Arahura River 12 months ago, from hard against the North abutment back towards the middle of the bridge. Now they have until September 1st to carefully move it back to its original position prior to the start of whitebait season.
“The river is privately owned and whitebaiting is a very important local activity. Part of the contract was to ensure whitebaiting wasn’t interfered with. This condition determined the deadline for the river movements. It’s all about doing the job with the least impact on the river,” he says.
Neil McKay says it’s the first time he’s known of whitebait to be a reason for a contract deadline.
Moving a river is not easy work. When diverting main river flows there are numerous environmental factors to consider such as using a method that allows fish to exit the old river flow and mitigating downstream siltation.
While Taylors used GPS technology on their diggers for underwater rock placement it was also utilised to achieve the new river depths.
“It is quite skilled to learn to work a machine by only looking at a screen in the cab. You’re effectively working blind when you’re under water. It’s muddy and there’s no visibility so we need the best technology to do the job,” says Neil.
Taylors have quarried, carted and placed about 60,000 tonnes of rock in the Arahura River and used a precision pattern to ensure each rock shows a smooth face to help water flow. The underwater walls are laid to an exact height. They had to be 2 metres deep and up to seven metres above the water surface in some places. This meant digging down as much as 4 metres below the riverbed and building rock back up.
“When you drive over the bridge people may not realise that there’s probably as much of the rock wall below river level as there is sticking out,” says Neil.
Neil McKay is confident they’ll make the September 01 deadline and he says it’s been a really great project to work on.
“We employed four locals from the coast and then we brought myself and another driver with the GPS experience. It’s been an awesome challenge, especially with the west coast wet weather!”.
The next stage of the job for Taylors is to complete remaining abutment protection works and from there on it’s all about site rehabilitation as well as assisting HEB and ONTRACK complete a heritage park which will display a section of the old bridge.
HEB Structures has been contracted to build the new 220 metre long bridge, which is due to be completed in January 2010. It consists of nine steel and concrete spans and 20 concrete piles. Work has been carried out in stages to keep State Highway 6 open throughout construction. The contract has been meticulous in its planning and HEB Structures in coordination with Taylors have ensured all works tracked precisely to program.
KiwiRail’s infrastructure arm, ONTRACK is leading the bridge construction and NZTA is responsible for the road approaches.
ENDS.business.scoop.co.nz/2009/08/21/contractors-move-a-river-for-whitebaiters
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:18:48 GMT 10
Whitebait wipe-outIf your whitebait try to climb out of the bucket you should probably help them back into the stream, says Mervyn Dykes who has been exploring fritter fancies this week.Manawatu Standard | Monday, 24 August 2009BACK IN the old days, shoals of whitebait swept up rivers and streams like dark clouds. So many were caught that our great grandparents used them for fertiliser, or fed the excess to the chooks until the eggs started tasting fishy.
But in these days of slim pickings it's good to remember that not all whitebait are born equal some really will try to climb out of your bucket.
According to the Conservation Department, there could be five species of whitebait in the bucket.
Two of them, the rare koaro and shortjaw kokopu, can climb straight up a vertical surface if it's damp enough. Most of the whitebait in your bucket are likely to be the three less-rare species the inanga (what most people call "whitebait"), banded kokopu and giant kokopu, says DOC ranger Hannah Rainforth.
Inanga are poor climbers and will probably be the ones that keep swimming endless circles in the bucket. The rarer types are likely to head for the wall when the oxygen level in the water drops even if they don't make it all the way to the top.
"After the fish have been in there a while, their respiration gradually uses up the oxygen in the water," says Ms Rainforth. "This spurs them into action, and they seek out better, more oxygenated water.
"If you spot any fish making the mountainous climb up the side of it [the bucket], scoop them out and release them. That way, you still get a fritter and our rare and threatened species get to live a day longer."
So that's where keeping an eye on your bucket makes good sense.
Whitebait season started on August 15. It will continue to November 30, except for the West Coast, where the season is from September 01 to November 14 and the Chathams (December 01 till the end of February).
Of the five whitebait species, inanga are the most numerous. They are not so fussy about their habitat and can often be found in lower catchment waters. But giant kokopu prefer swampy and heavily vegetated streams, while short-jaw kokopu, banded kokopu and koaro prefer fast-flowing rocky streams with forest cover.
All of these whitebait species spend part of their life at sea, which means they need a clear path to travel between habitats.
DOC says the long-term survival of native fish, including those that make up whitebait catches, is under threat. Habitats are shrinking as wetlands are drained, streamside vegetation is removed and barriers to fish passage are placed in waterways.
The real old-timers among the "baiters" will regale you with tales of the golden days.
The journals of early immigrants refer to shoals of whitebait swimming upstream, darkening the water.
Traditionally, Maori would use nets and groynes formed in the gravel of river banks to catch whitebait moving upstream during spring. They also caught adult inanga in nets as the fish moved downstream to spawn and adult giant kokopu in scoop nets and traps.
Catches were preserved by drying the tiny fish on racks above a fire, or on mats in the sun. A favoured way to cook whitebait was to steam them in a hangi in flax baskets lined with fern fronds.
Te Ara, the on-line encyclopedia quotes from Lady Mary Anne Barker's book Station Life in New Zealand (1870) in which she says she enjoyed "a good luncheon of whitebait", and rested and fed the horses.
"From the window of the hotel I saw a few groups of ‘Maories’; [they had] a rude sort of basket made of flax fibres, or buckets filled with whitebait, which they wanted us to buy."
Europeans were quick to adopt Maori whitebaiting methods, but made their nets from cotton mesh instead of flax. Whitebait fed gold miners in the West Coast rushes and in the 1870s and 1880s enterprising Chinese miners dried whitebait and sent it to Otago and even to China. Because the Marine Department didn't start recording catches systematically until around 1930, it was difficult to say then whether declines were actual or due to other factors such as seasonal variations. Reports show that on the West Coast the 1911, 1912 and 1915 seasons were poor, while 1909 was "extremely poor".
However, today there is almost universal anecdotal acceptance that in most of New Zealand the size of whitebait runs has declined.
DOC, which manages the fishery, identifies the spawning habitats and encourages landowners to fence off these areas from stock. Other measures include riverbank planting, and ensuring that any work carried out in river beds does not disturb this habitat.
Scientists from the University of Canterbury are also engaged in research they believe will lead to better stocks of the delicacy in our streams and rivers.
Funded by $1.1 million from the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology, they have begun a four-year project to investigate where inanga (Galaxias maculates) lay their eggs and the issues that threaten their spawning habitats.
It is estimated that over 99.5 per cent of the larvae die between hatching and returning from the sea as whitebait, highlighting the importance of ensuring plentiful spawning sites if populations are to be sustained.
It can take years for optimum spawning conditions to develop and several factors work against the process and threaten existing spawning habitat, including flooding, sedimentation, grazing livestock, bank disturbance and deforestation.
So, if you see whitebait climbing up the side of your bucket, give them a break.www.stuff.co.nz/manawatu-standard/news/2780694/Whitebait-wipe-out DOC seizes Cascade whitebait netsThe Greymouth Star | Tuesday, 25 August 2009A helicopter prepares to swoop on a set net in the Cascade River at the weekend, during Department of Conservation aerial compliance patrols in South Westland. — Photo: The Greymouth Star.A HELICOPTER prepares to swoop on a set net in the Cascade River at the weekend, during Department of Conservation aerial compliance patrols in South Westland.
DOC South Westland Weheka area manager Jo Macpherson said all rivers, from the Saltwater to Hope, were patrolled aerially in order to cover a large number of rivers in a short period of time.
“On the weekend some nets were recovered” Ms Macpherson said.
“Most rivers were pretty good, although it is disappointing to see that some still flout the law and put their nets in the water prior to the whitebait season starting. This is the key time to let the whitebait spawn, and I am sure most whitebaiters will agree the more whitebait that spawn prior to the season opening the better for the species and the whitebaiters.”
She said DOC staff would be giving the compliance on South Westland rivers a real push this season, with increased hours and patrols.www.greystar.co.nz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3649&Itemid=1
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:19:00 GMT 10
Whitebait opening washed outBy MATT KERSTEN - The Greymouth Star | Monday, 31 August 2009FLOODED rivers and forecasts of more rain will keep most whitebaiters at home tomorrow for the opening of the West Coast whitebait season.
Department of Conservation Grey-mouth ranger Brad Edwards said that once the rivers cleared, however, the bait may make a run for it.
“We tend to get runs after the floods. There’s debate that the bait can sense the water clarity and head up the rivers when the silt and mud clears out.”
In the meantime, some whitebaiters who fish from registered stands have held off building their stands due to the constant flooding lately and for fear they could be washed away.
“On the likes of the Taramakau River, we’ve noticed that they’re holding off erecting their stands. Effectively it will (delay the opening of the season) if people can’t fish,” Mr Edwards said.www.greystar.co.nz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3663&Itemid=43 Foul start to whitebait seasonBy JANNA SHERMAN - The Greymouth Star | Tuesday, 01 September 2009WET: Opening day of the West Coast whitebait season on the Hokitika River. — Photo: The Greymouth Star.THE West Coast whitebait season officially got under way this morning, but whitebaiters dreaming of clear waters and perfect fishing conditions may have to wait a few more days.
West Coast Whitebaiters’ Association vice-president Brian McCarthy said “very few” would be lucky enough to catch a feed today, as the murky waters from recent heavy rain, coupled with high winds, made conditions unsuitable for fishing.
“No doubt people will still be out trying but when the south-westerlies are blowing, that brings the sea up and the whitebait don’t like a rough sea. Those fishing right on the river edge may be lucky to get a feed but there is that much dirt in the water at the moment that it will make a mess of their nets.”
Bigger catches would come when the weather improved, possibly by Thursday, he said.
“The big runs of whitebait come when the sea is calm and flat and the sun is shining. The better the weather the better the whitebait catch is, usually.”
Metservice weather forecaster Bob McDavitt said after today’s front of heavy rain, and possible thunderstorms, showers would start to clear tomorrow.
Fine weather and light winds were forecast to arrive on the West Coast on Thursday and last through to the weekend, he said.www.greystar.co.nz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3667&Itemid=1
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:19:13 GMT 10
Net gainBy NAOMI ARNOLD - The Nelson Mail | Saturday, 05 September 2009THE 'BAITER: Leon Couper of Takaka with his Southland double trap sock net near the mouth of the Takaka River down from Waitapu Bridge. — MARION VAN DIJK/The Nelson Mail.THE siren song of the whitebait is once again calling crowds of hopefuls to rivers and streams across the countryside.
"It's not quite the right time of year for whitebait," says Geoff McCleely. In the bottle shop of Takaka's Junction Hotel he flips the calendar to October and shows us his annual three weeks' whitebaiting holiday, already booked.
"You're going out with Leon, eh? He was over there the other day and only got three ounces and a wet arse. It's better later in the season."
It could be true: but whitebaiters can be dissembling, cagey characters, as skittish and suspicious as the elusive fish themselves. And everyone has an opinion.
Sitting on the rocky bank of the Takaka River, Leon Couper confirms the rumour.
"I only got eight on the first day." But, of course, he could be lying.
He has an easy banter, the mark of a lifetime spent yarning. He describes his days on the river during the tempestuous whitebait season as a mix of camaraderie and one-upmanship.
"I won't tell them that I got a pound. You have to lie a wee bit. Everybody knows everybody and we all get out and have a talk about it and tell a lot of lies. None of us tells the truth, really."
Once a commercial fisherman, he now manages Golden Bay Motels with his wife, Helen. He's spent this morning on the golf course and has just motored us down the Takaka River to set up his net a few metres from the river's mouth. Now we're sitting on the bank watching the tide filter through it, waiting for whitebait.
"Usually the best time is three or four days after a storm, when the water's the colour it is now," he says. Clear, greenish, but as yet no sign of the little fish.
He slides a length of white-painted tin into the water in front of the net, so we can spy the fish swimming over it, a rough estimate of the catch.
Like most 'baiters, Mr Couper has been doing this as long as he can remember. "My mother used to push me down in the pram. The first thing my grandmother taught me was to stay still because one small movement will frighten them. They're unpredictable little fish."
"When I was five or six, I would take a net and a bucket and we would fill that and come home. We would go down there morning after morning and we would be the only ones there. But now they're getting caught every day, right through the season."
Lifetime whitebaiters will likely tell you the same nostalgic story of colonial days with empty riverbanks, a one-tonne haul, a year's salary earned in a few months. Mr Couper doesn't think anyone earns that much up here. But when you can net them, the reward is delicious.
He confides his secret ingredient for fritters that are full of whitebait flavour with no mucky, floury taste. "Use instant potato instead. But you've got to be careful how you do it. Not too much, because it swells up and takes all the moisture out let it sit and then slowly work it in."
Whether a few patties banged up in a battered pan or something posh and contemporary, the craving for this delicacy whips us into a patriotic foodie passion every spring. Auckland restaurant Molten does a whitebait-crusted southern snapper with cauliflower nuggets, candied tomatoes and a lemon butter sauce; Daniel Monopoli at Nelson's Boat Shed Cafe prefers simple, Italian-style, lightly dusted in flour, quickly sauteed in olive oil and served with bread and butter.
As happens every year, there have been reports of illegal poaching in West Coast rivers before the season officially opened on September 1. Hunger for whitebait in the main centres can see the tiny delicacy fetch top dollar. In Christchurch, Cascade Whitebait is selling new season's West Coast catch for about $100 a kilo, although heavy rain this week dampened the start of the season. Unfortunate Aucklanders craving an early taste of the South Island will have to pay $160 for a frozen kilo.
While Golden Bay isn't as commercial as the West Coast, high prices can lead to jealous protection of prime spots, and sometimes a bit of argy-bargy. "It's a good pastime, but come down when they're running and every man and his dog's here," says Mr Couper. "There's a few dudes who break the law at times and put a second net in. A few strong words, or arguments might break out."
Two women, once: "Of all things! And one ended up with a bleeding nose."
In the height of the season with a tide at three o'clock, people will have been down the river since 2am to grab their spot. He wouldn't bother with that, but admits his two-trap Southland sock net can irritate die-hard 'baiters. "Some of them get a bit annoyed because they think you catch everything if you go in front of them," he explains. "But on a day like today, a scoop net's very hard work because of the ripples on the water. It's long hours for stuff-all sometimes. You can waste a lot of time doing it."
He prefers using the sock net to a simpler scoop net and bucket, not least because once the fish are in the net they can't escape. On a warm day, whitebait dumped in a bucket can start turning white, cooking themselves too early. With a net parked in the river, they're kept fresh and alive right up to the last minute.
Rather than a single type of fish, whitebait are the young of five scale-less native species of the ancient order of galaxiidae. Inanga make up 90 per cent of the run, but whitebaiters may also catch the threatened baby giant kokopu and shortjaw kokopu, as well as koaro and banded kokopu, depending on the river.
Whitebait swim up our rivers from the sea every year to breed in the wetlands, only there's not many wetlands left: and perhaps not that many whitebait left soon, either. Nelson Conservation Department freshwater ecologist Martin Rutledge says declining habitat, water quality and quantity and wetland drainage are major issues for the survival of future generations of whitebait.
"Management of stock around inanga spawning grounds is really important. If you've got stock in those areas during the spawning periods there's potential trampling of the eggs and changes to the habitat. Inanga are quite an unusual fish, laying their eggs on land when the water's really high they're actually depositing their eggs in the terrestrial environment and waiting for them to be submerged in the next spring tide."
Mr Rutledge says DOC is trying to make farmers aware of the habitats and habits of the fish and provide options such as fencing. Natural predators such as mice, crabs and little eels also eat whitebait eggs.
"When inanga spawn the water turns white from the milt. They used to be called cow fish because the water turned milky white from the spawning. You can still see that these days," says DOC ecologist Martin Rutledge.
And then there's whitebaiting as murder. It's as bad as killing kakapo chicks for dinner, wrote a recent complainant to The Nelson Mail. Fishing pressure was the target of a 2001 Niwa study on North Taranaki's Mokau River, which used dye-stained whitebait to determine the number of fish that escaped past anglers' nets. It showed that whitebaiters caught a relatively small proportion of the run: results suggested less than 30 per cent.
Mr Couper doesn't hold much truck with the decline of native fish species being laid squarely on the shoulders of whitebaiters. "There's a lot of other factors around it as well. They have to go through a fair bit of other stuff before they even get to us. All the swamps that have been drained over the years. A lot of my spots where I used to duck shoot have gone. I know for a fact that the whitebait used to breed there."
"Sock nets should be banned!" calls a voice. A fellow whitebaiter, Simon Page they call him Quiver is striding over the bank toward us, come to have a go. "You can write that," he throws at me. He's swigging from a 1.5-litre bottle of Sparkling Lemon, one buckle of his khaki waders unclasped and dangling down his back. He stuffs the bottle down his front and glares at the offending net. "They shouldn't be allowed. I like to give the whitebait a chance."
"It's under six metres, it's within the rules," says Mr Couper mildly.
"Sock nets are for old men and old women. You can sit up there and have a sleep while doing it."
Mr Couper, who admitted a few hours ago to enjoying a "wee kip" in his boat on a quiet, sunny day, harrumphs slightly.
"That's not what I call fishing," Quiver continues.
"You'll get over it."
Quiver has also been coming down here most of his life. "Since I was old enough to sneak away from school."
Sock nets, with their guaranteed catch, are cheating; he favours a simpler scoop net. It's more honest, he thinks.
But it hardly makes a difference today. He reckons it's not looking promising. It's too early in the season here in Golden Bay, which starts a week before the West Coast and finishes a week later.
"We start a fortnight too early here. Some years down the Coast they're that big" he stretches out a thumb and index finger "you damn near need to gut 'em. I don't think you'll get a feed today. I might go pig hunting."
He tramps off through the scrub with a parting shot, a fist shaking in the air: "Ban the bloody sock net!"
About 3pm, the gannets start diving in the river mouth. Mr Couper says they're not actually spearing the fish, not like you'd think. "They concuss them with a hit from their beaks and then snap them up while they're stunned," he says. The birds circle above the water before streaking straight down, disappearing for a second and then popping up again like corks. Gannets go blind from the constant pressure of the diving, eventually.
"A gannet'll usually die of blindness before anything else. They starve to death.
"I wonder what they're going for," he muses, but his mind turns back to the catch. "Sometimes when the birds start working like that it can be a good sign."
Three-thirty. A cold wind is whipping rain across the bay. A rainbow starts to beam in the sky, stretching from somewhere in the Cobb Valley to where the spit of sand meets the sea, where flocks of gannets, terns, seagulls and oyster-catchers tuck themselves into the wind. Almost time to take the net in and check the catch.
He unshackles the screens, unpegs the net and hauls it in, pausing to point out the didymo smearing his screens. "Horrible stuff."
Untying the end of the net, he shakes out a couple of cups of wriggling whitebait into his orange bucket. A few silvery pilchard glitter in the bottom. "Ah, that's what the gannets would've been diving for," says Mr Couper. He throws out the cockabullies, sea lice anything that doesn't belong in his writhing, glimmering catch.
From further up the river, another figure appears and lopes across the sand bank towards us.
"Gets everyone excited. As soon as the bucket comes out, they'll come over to see what you've got," he says as a man arrives and peers at the fish swilling around the bottom of the bucket.
"Not much then," the visitor grins, satisfied.
At the end of the day, heading back up the Takaka, Mr Couper nods at the Waitapu Bridge crossing the river as we motor underneath it.
"Last season, people got that annoyed about the sock nets they hung a big sign off the Waitap Bridge that said ‘Sock Nets Suck’."
He seems unperturbed. The whitebaiters lining the shore as we chug past are placid, lifting a hand in lazy acknowledgement. Perhaps they're muttering under their breath.
"Not so much aggro this year then?" I ask.
"No. Not yet, anyway."www.stuff.co.nz/nelson-mail/features/weekend/2837847/Net-gain
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:19:28 GMT 10
Whitebait secrets not frittered awayBy GERALD FORD - Wairarapa Times-Age | Wednesday, 16 September 2009'BAITER: Whitebaiting woman Diane Laing, a passionate pastime for close to 40 years.WHITEBAITER Diane Laing of East Taratahi is happy to share her fritter recipe; just don't ask her where she goes to catch them.
"You get your favourite spots and your favourite nets," she said.
"It's best if you've got several different spots."
She is coy, however, on where those places are — or even how successful she's been this year.
"We got four the other day, (but) a good little lot Monday," she said.
Mrs Laing has been catching whitebait in Wairarapa for close to 40 years.
Her father was a whitebaiter and the first time she went herself was with a friend when they were both young mothers.
"We were so green we took a preserving jar for the whitebait; one would watch the children, and the other would watch the net."
Now she has learned, "don't take children or dogs".
With dogs, "you just get a bucket ready, and you knock it over."
The biggest haul of whitebait Mrs Laing could remember was many years ago; it filled the bath to within a few inches of the top.
"I was greeted at the door by my aunt saying, ‘I don't know how we're going to bath the children’, and her husband had gone down to the pub to celebrate."
That was an exceptionally heavy catch.
"That was incredible."
Mrs Laing said whitebaiting is a "passion".
"It's so good for you; you're out in the fresh air."
"I went out yesterday with someone who had been fishing for years, and had never been whitebaiting.
"He said, ooh, this is magic — and it was, because we had a magic day."
Mrs Laing said she enjoys seeing others out enjoying the elements, especially in fine weather.
"It's good to see that hunter-gatherer thing is still happening."______________________________________ Diane Laing's Whitebait Fritter Recipe- Take 1 egg and a dessert spoon of water.
- Beat with a fork.
- Mix with a generous amount of whitebait.
- Lightly coat a frying pan with a mixture of fifty-fifty butter and rice-bran oil.
- Fry until golden brown.
- Add salt and pepper to taste, with optional lemon juice.
www.times-age.co.nz/local/news/whitebait-secrets-not-frittered-away/3904243
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:19:46 GMT 10
'Bait scarceThe Greymouth Star | Thursday, 17 September 2009WHITEBAIT.DESPITE reports of pre-season large shoals, the Grey River has been basically bereft of whitebait since the season began a fortnight ago.
Many hopeful baiters braved a chilly easterly this morning to line the river but by the top of the tide, about 10am, only two — guarding prime sites — remained.www.greystar.co.nz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3701&Itemid=1 Whitebait race is onThe Greymouth Star | Thursday, 17 September 2009ALL SET: The ‘Ingafungas’ team ready for the great whitebait race.CLOCKWISE from left, organiser Don Neale and members of the ‘Inangafungas’ team, Ray Kingi, Annie Perry, Dean Hetherington and Christine Barton warm up for Thursday’s whitebait relay event.
The plan is for teams to race through a themed obstacle course on Weld Street, and finish by cooking a whitebait pattie.
The relay is one of the many events organised as part of the Hokitika Rocks festival.www.greystar.co.nz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3703&Itemid=41
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:19:58 GMT 10
Whitebaiting difficult at the Opihi River mouthThe Timaru Herald | Saturday, 19 September 2009A HELPING HAND: Jared Lyne of Temuka, and Alan Washington of Timaru help local whitebaiter Tea Rangirangi at the Opihi River mouth. — JOHN BISSET/The Timaru Herald.KEEN local whitebaiter Tea Rangirangi needed a helping hand from fellow fishermen Jared Lyne of Temuka, and Alan Washington of Timaru, as the tide came in at the Opihi River mouth yesterday afternoon.
The river has scoured a high bank at the mouth making it difficult to whitebait once the tide turned.
Only small catches have been reported this season.www.stuff.co.nz/timaru-herald/news/2881652/Whitebaiting-difficult-at-the-Opihi-River-mouth
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:20:10 GMT 10
Whitebait explainedLetters to the Editor - Waikato Times | Monday, 21 September 2009AS OF late whitebait catches have been terrible on our part of the west coast. As the owner-operator of the world's only whitebait farm I would like to explain to fellow whitebaiters why this could be so.
At the start of the season we were catching fish from the April spawning. But our main whitebait spawning is over the peak spring tides in May. This occurred on May 26-27 for 2009. Hatching was supposed to occur on the next set of peak spring tides from June 22-24. Unfortunately an anticyclone with very high air pressure was stationary over the upper North Island west coast at this time. The high air pressure and easterly winds reduced the tidal amplitude at Raglan from 1.69m to about 1.14m for these few crucial tides.
The result was that the fully developed eggs waiting on the stream banks were not flooded, did not hatch and so we lost the main spawning for the year, which are the September whitebait.
I would expect there to be some whitebait around in October when the spawning that hatched on July 21-23 turns up. However, this is usually a smaller run than from the June hatchings.
Isn't nature just wonderful?
CHARLES MITCHELL Raglanwww.stuff.co.nz/waikato-times/opinion/letters/2886370/Letters-September-21-Whitebait-explained
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:20:20 GMT 10
Complaints of pitbulls used to intimidate whitebaitersBy VIV LOGIE - The Greymouth Star | Thursday, 24 September 2009REPORTS that pitbulls have been used to intimidate rival whitebaiters from venturing near prime fishing spots on the Grey River have prompted a warning from the police.
Greymouth police community constable Michael Tinnelly said they were aware of a few arguments among whitebaiters about who has prior rights to certain possies, but warned that no one “owns the rocks”.
“On the Grey River there are no licensed stands and if a rock is empty, anyone can fish from it.”
The Greymouth Star has received reports that some whitebaiters have been scaring people away from parts of the river by tying up ferocious dogs.
West Coast police area commander Inspector John Canning said he had not received any complaints of that sort of intimidation.
“However, if they are frightening the living daylights out of people, we will look into it.”
If the people concerned were just sitting on the rocks fishing and their dogs barked, there was nothing the police could do about it.
“But if the dogs are being used in a threatening manner people should contact us so we can put a stop to it.”
While someone might have the “prime spot on a rock” today, did not mean they had any prior rights to it tomorrow, Mr Canning said.
“No one can stop anyone else from fishing from a rock and we will not tolerate other whitebaiters intimidating their fellow whitebaiters.”
Mr Tinnelly also urged people to contact the police at the first sign of trouble.
“We want to nip any bad behaviour in the bud before it gets out of control.”
Just before the start of the current whitebait season someone placed a sign at the famed ‘big rock’ on the Grey River, warning people to stay away “if they valued their life”.
The sign was taken down by the harbour authorities.
Mr Canning said at the time police would not tolerate intimidation or threats against other fishermen to try to enforce a monopoly.www.greystar.co.nz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3717&Itemid=43
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:20:29 GMT 10
Whitebait Fritters with AioliBy DIXIE ELLIOT - MindFood.comSEASONAL TREAT: Whitebait fritters with aioli. — Photo: WILLIAM MEPPEM.SERVES 4 (makes 12 fritters). Whitebait Fritters Ingredients:- 5 eggs
- 2 tbsp plain flour
- 300g whitebait
- salt and pepper, to season
- 40g butter
- lemon wedges, to serve
- 2 avocados, diced, to serve
- Aioli, to serve
Whitebait Fritters Method:- Preheat oven to 120°C.
- Line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Whisk eggs and flour in a bowl.
- Add whitebait, stirring until well combined.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Heat half the butter in a frying pan over medium heat.
- When hot add 2-tbsp quantities of whitebait mixture to pan, making 3 fritters at a time.
- Cook for 2 minutes or until golden.
- Turn fritters and cook for a further 1–2 minutes or until golden and whitebait has turned opaque.
- Transfer fritters to prepared baking tray and put in oven to keep warm. Cook remaining fritters.
- Serve with lemon wedges, avocado and aioli.
AIOLI- Put 2 egg yolks and 1 tbsp lemon juice in a food processor and process for 30 seconds or until combined.
- With processor running on slow, add ½ cup light olive oil in a steady stream through funnel.
- Taste and season with salt and pepper if required.
- Spoon aioli into a serving bowl.
- Add warm water to aioli if it seems too thick.
www.mindfood.com/at-recipe-whitebait-fritters-with-aioli.seo
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Post by Deleted on Sept 29, 2012 18:20:45 GMT 10
Catches improve in Hokitika, southern riversBy SANDY EGGLESTON - The Greymouth Star | Wednesday, 30 September 2009HAPPY FISHERMAN: Whitebaiter Bruce Shaw on the banks of the Grey River.EVEN THOUGH catches are lean so far, Greymouth whitebaiter Bruce Shaw does not mind.
He said he was enjoying the fishing and had caught several pounds since the season began a month ago.
Around the rest of the West Coast the whitebait are still slow to come up most rivers, although there are reports of occasional big catches on the Hokitika River.
Department of Conservation Hokitika ranger Ted Brennan said he had heard an unconfirmed report of someone netting a 100kg catch on the Hokitika River.
The Totara, Waitaha and Wanganui rivers had a good day a week ago, but that was only for one day.
Westbait Whitebait co-owner Ross Flynn said there had been the odd good day on rivers in the Haast district and while there were rumours of big catches he had not seen any of it.
Mr Flynn said there was still snow on the mountains behind Haast and that was keeping the rivers cold.
DOC Westport ranger John Green said although the rivers around Buller were dirty, a few two or three-pound (0.9 to 1.36kg) catches had been reported. But there had been no big runs yet.
“It is early days yet. October is usually the best time for us up here,” Mr Green said.
DOC Greymouth ranger Brad Edwards said small runs had been observed on the Taramakau and Grey rivers on a couple of days.
He had also heard reports of several nine or 10-pound (4 to 4.5kg) catches but generally there was not much about. It was shaping up as a typical season when the whitebait came in later on, Mr Edwards said.www.greystar.co.nz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3728&Itemid=1
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