February 21, 2024
VRFish is inviting all Victorian recfishers to complete our latest survey.
If you go fishing for Murray cod, we’d love to hear from you!
In our latest survey, we’re asking you to share which waterways you’d love to see become a year-round Murray cod fishery.
In 2022/23 more than 3 million Murray cod were stocked across Victoria. We’ve seen the success of Eildon and we’re waiting with ‘baited’ breath for Rocklands to come online.
In recent years, the Victorian Fisheries Authority (VFA), with support from VRFish and recreational fishers, have opened selected waterways to year-round Murray cod fishing (removed the Murray cod closed season).
In 2016, the VFA removed the Murray Cod closed season at Lake Eildon, and in 2023, the VFA removed the closed season for all waters of the Wimmera and Millicent basins, except the Wimmera River.
These waters were opened for year-round Murray cod fishing because:
- Research into Murray cod populations has found that natural breeding and recruitment lakes and impoundments is typically very low, meaning the closed season has very little benefit.
- Millions of Murray cod are stocked annually into these waters, creating put-and-take Murray cod fisheries.
- Year-round Murray cod fisheries in lakes and impoundments shift fishing pressure from nearby natural systems (rivers), where Murray cod do breed during the closed season.
- Year-round Murray cod fishing in lakes and impoundments can provide a boost to regional businesses through increased fishing tourism visitation between September-December.
The current regulations for Murray cod fishing in Victoria can be viewed here.
VRFish will take your feedback to the Victorian Fisheries Authority and advocate for the most popular stocked waterways to be considered as year-round Murray cod fisheries, like we achieved with the Wimmera and Millicent basins, excluding the Wimmera River.
To say thanks for having your say, you can go into the running to win one of five VRFish 3-5kg custom spin combos.
To complete the survey, please click the button below.
Survey closes 28 February 2024.
