'A SPLASH OF RED'

It was a typical work day on Lake Awoonga, Central Queensland, with barramundi being the 100% target species. Two clients were casting deep diving timber lures at a submerged, hidden point with scattered tree tops below. One lure was three quarters of the way back to the boat where it was met with a fast powerful strike. I was watching the rod tip at the time. Neat, forceful boils of water broke the surface as a fish with a strong tail-beat worked hard against the heavy drag of fifty pound braid. Immediately I picked up on the difference in fight, and the quick direction changes of the fish had me wondering. Boils erupted continuously as the angler struggled to gain any line. Eventually the angler slowly began to take control as the fish came into my view when unfortunately the hooks pulled free. I saw red. Not an angry red, but the colour red. I questioned the men if they saw any colour. Neither of them saw the fish. It had me wondering. "That was a big jack over 60 cm", I said to myself. Less than ten casts later the exact scenario unfolded. This time the fish headed around the bow where the client called it as being a solid red fish, at about the same time the hooks pulled free once again. That encounter left me bewildered, but enthused as to what may transpire in an inland lake if the trial jack stockings boomed. Those two fish had more control over the angler than vice versa, and the intent in which those two fish pulled back against the rod was very impressive. Both strikes were extremely vicious, livening the angler and leaving a guide on the edge of his seat.

The whizz bang strike, jump and size of impoundment barramundi sets them high on the freshwater pedestal, but, hanging in the balance is a potential fishery with a shady character whose name is enough to turn heads and make anglers stop and listen. The 'Mangrove Jack' is a name that has always inspired many anglers. Just like their cousins Papuan black bass, spot-tail bass, fingermark and red bass, the jack will also smash a lure with tenacity, force and intended reason. Historical pictures of anglers, in stubbies and a singlet with bait caster and minnow lure with jack attached, are firmly etched in my mind like artwork. Jacks are a highly prized recreational target species. Monumental short sharp battles and limp chafed lines are testament to their tough fighting ability and crafty escape tactics. This type of action motivates anglers. To dream of fertile lakes stocked to the hilt with millions of jack fingerlings is a future prospect that may not be that far off; fingers crossed. About thirteen years ago I supplied wild brood stock barramundi from saltwater environments to kick start fingerling productions for Lake Awoonga.

 Years later it was jacks; and, as a recreational angler at that time, I was willing to assist the programme and capture larger maturing female jacks from inshore to get the show rolling. Maturing is the key word, as most estuarine jacks are younger immature fish that await a natural one-way migration to the deep waters offshore where they mature and breed. The rest was up to hatchery technicians, biologists and Mother Nature. Now down the line we are able to assist once again by offering feedback and proof of these living lutjanids in Awoonga. The fact is that the very limited jack stockings have been moderately successful with quality fish documented and recorded. The problem why jacks have not boomed in lakes is due to small stocking numbers and an issue in the cycle of larval development in hatcheries. Millions of larvae can be successfully spawned, but, at present, a missing link stands in the way of juvenile development, blocking the expansion of recreational only freshwater fisheries almost country wide. More work is being carried out by the DPI within Australia and in Indonesia, to rectify the problem. Jacks are a chunky fish capable of exceeding twenty-five kilograms in deeper, offshore regions. Captures have been recorded in over 100 metres of water. Documented sightings by spear fisherman, including good friend Tim McDonald, have uncovered jack populations in 30-40 metre depths with large schools of 200 plus mature jacks from 10 to 20 kilograms, so, the potential for massive fish in enclosed lakes brings on a possible PNG black bass scenario in our own backyard. Fish of at least five kilograms have been taken in lakes like Awoonga and the reports of jacks from Lake Tinaroo near Cairns are equally of note and typically pleasing.

Often regarded as a snag dwelling fish, it seems that mangrove jack in lakes adopt a nomadic lifestyle just like the barramundi. Water quality is of paramount importance hence why fish roam; and when we take a look at the statistics of catch-records of photographed jacks from Awoonga, we discover not only a trend of wide distribution like the barra, but, also one of consistency that directly links the jack to a certain topography in the lake. Even though the cross section of captures is quite small, a trend still exists. Of the 9 jack incidents that have occurred on my charter vessel or with close friends, all have had one thing in common. They have all been hooked in locations with very little weed growth which coincides with areas with harder bottom composition. The first jack capture that I recall in Awoonga was a 49cm jack caught on dusk by fishing partner Terrin Sharpe, on a Reidy's B52 lure cast to a rocky shoreline near the mouth of New Zealand Gully. Another 60 odd cm fish was hooked in the same location at four pm just after the floods of 2008 by visitor Brad Chegwyn, also on a Reidy's big B52; the fish escaping whilst being lip gripped. Charter angler Clint Roest landed a 54cm jack on a 100mm soft plastic lure casting to sparse weed stands again on a hard bottom contour on the western side of Lake Awoonga. That fish was caught around 7am. Co-author of the book, 'Cruisin' the Barra Highways', Lyndon Anzelark, and his wife Kelly have both caught mangrove jack from Awoonga. Kelly landed hers on a hard bodied lure at 10 pm off the bank near the popular ski and recreation area, again, a location with harder bottom composition and little weed growth. The fish was spotted hunting the edges in the moonlight, a bow wave being the vital giveaway to its presence. A well timed cast presented an easy target for the vibrant red jack; the fish striking moments after lure splashdown. To make the capture even more exciting, the jack jumped violently on hook-up, teasing the angler into thinking she had a barra. On Australia Day, 2008, Lyndon managed a 52cm jack on a River to Sea soft plastic lure casting to a submerged island; yes you've guessed it, a hard earthen outcrop with minimal weed growth. The time, mid to late afternoon.

Early summer 2008 saw another charter client, Peter Keenan land a 62cm jack in 30ft of water on a paddle tailed soft plastic worked very close to the floor of Awoonga. In this depth, no dense weed existed. Fish were located on the sounder; mostly barramundi and catfish, and lures were worked repeatedly until surprisingly, a jack struck. A fast and long run had me thinking a metre plus barra was on his line, but an unusual fight pattern emerged, and we called it for a jack well before it was even seen. An ecstatic angler he was, not to mention the rest of us on board with smiles from ear to ear. Jacks have been captured when trolling, and the best documented fish that I know of was a 68cm beauty, landed by another visiting angler. The next night at the same spot, another jack was landed and if there is any truth in the fishing grapevine, the captures were taken along a deep rocky wall in Iveragh Creek. Are we seeing a trend here? Even though the numbers of fish being reported are very low, when we take into account the fishing effort applied to the fishery, it may just give us some insight into future areas to target jacks when the code is cracked for spawning success. One would have to be very lucky to catch a jack in Awoonga at present but there does seem to be a few clues unfolding. Little has ever been written, as very few have been photographed and recorded from the 13,800 original stockings. We would be very gullible to believe the stories of a 'dozen jacks' in one day alongside the 1.5 metre long barra stories that are never accompanied by photographic evidence. Tall stories don't help when monitoring any fishery.

Electro fishing, undertaken by fisheries scientists, have unearthed three jacks in Awoonga, and at least two of these documented captures have come from heavy timber piles within the lake, again, areas with less weed congestion. These two fish of approximately 3 kilograms were both tagged and released so if recaptured they will offer unique information on growth rates and movement. It seems the methods used to lure jacks, and their distribution in the lake is widespread, similar to that of the barra. A strong portion of the jack captures have come during the height of the summer months when lake temperatures are close to their peaks. In the wild, crustaceans form a significant part of their diet in estuaries, and red-claw crayfish in Awoonga are certainly on the hit list. Artificial crayfish lures will one day fool jacks in Awoonga, just like they have done, with barra. Another story which highlights their existence in barra lakes, is an incident where a fish crashed through the surface close to the boat on a glassy calm day whilst my eyes were off the water and in the tackle box. The splash was unfamiliar to me in the environment of Awoonga. It wasn't a mullet, a long tom or any other species that are common in the lake. I asked the lone female client if she actually saw the fish and she responded with these words. "It was a fish, I don't know what it was, but it was pink". Now she could have called any colour in the rainbow but she managed to say a colour that not only represents a jack, but it was the same location where about a week earlier the two jacks from the start of this article were hooked. Mangrove jacks love to eat food off the surface and this energetic behaviour is linked closely to the habits of jack in saltwater.

In January, 2009, a strikingly deep red specimen of 58cm, caught by an enthusiastic client in windy conditions on a Rapala X-Walk surface lure, shows little doubt that the potential of a thriving fishery is on the cards. Whether surface fishing or casting deep diving lures, jack fisheries in impoundments will one day open new and exciting study topics and extend the open-book world of impoundment barramundi. Odd sounder images, mid-lake, of sparse groups of moderate sized fish have me sometimes wondering about their identity. Sooty grunter or yellowbelly; or could it be a small school of jacks maybe; why not? we know they are in there. In the 2008/2009 season, another stocking of approximately 51,000 mangrove jack of 18-20 mm long added further dimension along with 27 extra hatchery born jacks stocked February, 2008. These 27 extra fish varied from about four to eight kilograms and were kept in hatchery conditions for five to seven years. Yes, almost twenty pound jacks are swimming in Awoonga and some of these newly released fish were reported to be chasing garfish almost immediately when released. Until science cracks the code wide open, which may be happening as we speak, we will still be patiently hoping for this exciting fishery to go boom; but don't be too surprised if the next "barra" you hook in Awoonga turns out to be bright red, with dog-like teeth and an attitude to match.

Johnny Mitchell