Southland Reel Life JAN 2017

Southland mouse fishing - update and tips

As mentioned in previous Reel Life articles, there have been isolated increases in mouse populations in some parts of Southland.

Trout love to get their teeth around a mouse given the opportunity and a good number of mice in a trout's diet can encourage serious growth.

Above right: Southland Fish & Game Field Officer Cohen Stewart with a Mararoa River brown trout, taken on a mouse lure.

Areas worth trying a mouse lure include the upper Waiau and Mararoa Rivers and Lakes Manapouri, Monowai and Mavora.

Even if mouse numbers have subsided in an area, trout will be familiar with mice and fish can still be taken on mouse lures.

Left: There are numerous mouse imitations available and they can all work well.

There are numerous mouse imitations available and they can all work well, but you don't necessarily need to buy any.

Homemade lures work great and there's the extra buzz from catching a trout on a lure you made yourself.

A simple DIY mouse lure involves getting a piece of pipe insulation (or similar foam) and crafting it into a mousy shape.

Insert a small torpedo sinker into the middle of the foam (this weight helps with casting).

Put a split ring and hook on one end of the sinker and a clip swivel on the other end.

Glue on a tail and some legs for an extra mousy look and you're good to go!

FISHING COMPLIANCE OVER THE HOLIDAYS

Over the holiday period Southland Fish & Game staff have been out and about catching up with anglers around the region.

Most anglers have been complying with the rules and purchased a fishing licence.

Right: Field officer Cohen Stewart and fully compliant angler Lesley Fredric on the Mataura River. Lesley has been a keen fly fisher for 20 years and has been having good success with the bead-head pheasant tail nymph.

As always however, there are a few who disappointingly decide to ‘chance it’ and don't buy a licence.

Southland Fish & Game staff, along with our honorary rangers, detected 15 offences over the holiday period.

All of these anglers were found fishing without a licence. They will face either prosecution or paying sizeable reparation costs (fines).

All of this hassle, and paperwork at our end could be prevented if they'd only bought a very affordable $20 One Day Licence.

Fish spotting

Over the next few months, staff will be running their annual drift diving surveys.

Rivers to be surveyed include the upper Oreti, upper Mataura, middle Aparima, upper Waiau (between the lakes), lower Waiau and Mararoa.

The exact day we do these dives will depend on the weather and river levels.

So we don’t disturb you while you’re fishing and scare away your fish, we'll keep anglers updated on the 'where and when' on our Facebook page.

If you haven't ‘liked’ the Southland Fish & Game Facebook page yet, we encourage you to do so.

We use Facebook to post all sorts of updates and interesting information pertaining to game birds and sports fish.