2004 President's Report

With the drought and the floods that have occurred over the last 12 months, Lake Moondarra gave up many secrets. despite the highs and lows we are better off for the experience, provided we use the knowledge wisely.

I learnt our lake can fish incredibly well even though the drought brought water levels below 20% two years in a row.

Our fishing comp. saw a record number of Barra weighed compared to all other freshwater impoundments in Queensland. This provied beyond a doubt that we have potentally , through the luxury of heat, very little structure and shallow depths, one of the best if not the best Barra impoundments in Queensland. To see the smile as 6 year old kids weigh in 6kg Barra caught on live Stripeys standing beside men who had fish smaller was a highlight. Sponorships and prizes were also up in previous years.

Then came the floods and instead of having hundreds of thousands of prey fish such as Bony Bream and thousands of L ong Toms and Catfish, we just saw Barra dead over the wall. The comination of such a big flow and the sudden temperature drop of the lakes water saw an unprecedented number of Barra escape. Many met with the fate of the spilllways roughhouse passage, many survived as has been seen by the fishing results down the entire length of the Leighhardt River and many were recaptured.

The floods taught us through previous tagging and the Barra that were recaptured below the wall, a way to see how many fish have survived from recent stockings and we should be able to finally calculate how many Barra Lake Moondarra can carry. One early realization is that no fingerlings, despite their size or numbers have survived over the last 3-4 years, when in fact record numbers of fingerlings were released. This is very valuable knowledge and it proves we need to change when, where and how we stock in the future. It also has made me realize the need to develop the hatchery . I have been very pleased with the work George Forune and Paul Groften have been putting in this direction. If we hold fingerlings over or grow out fingerlings until the conditions at the Lake are suitable for stocking, our results will improve in hard or drought years. For example, the best months for spawning Barra is in November and December, the worst time for us to stock our dams.

The hatchery will also expand our interaction with local school children and ultimately lead to increased numbers of fishstocking members and community interaction with Aboriginal and community groups.

The floods also showed us that we have created a fishery, however, the floods also showed us we now have to do more to protect our fishery as Barra leave to improve other areas down river to the Gulf. The work Mark has been doing to get funding for DPI studies into our need for local fishways is also pleasing.

This last year saw our secretary Mark Van Ryte re-elected to Councillor position and I have no doubt the group will and has benefitted from that extra contact. I will like to think that the good name and support for the Group helped a little in his push for the job of Councillor.

The work that the DPI did this last year with the electro boat suvey of all lakes in the area opened my eyes to the potential of the East Leichhardt and Lake Julius as fisheries. It was very pleading to catch two Barra at the East Leichhardt in November with the help of a few directions from Mal Pearce of the DPI.

Both lakes are now 'proven fisheries' and this year in particular, Julius will come into its own and I predict will fish better than Moondarra - the fishing comp . will decide this. The East Leichhardt will benefit in future from the knowledge that we have gained with Moondarra and that is that Miindarra is not really a stocking option under 70% full.

Over the next year the MIFSG needs to push for drvelopment of the fishways in particular the spillway , the proposed hatchery, the GBRA, (whom withour our support will struggle), and finally the introduction of the new constitution. Past and present members have worked hard on this document and we would be doing them and ourselves a dissevice not to introduce this early this year.

Many thanks to all those who have worked with, supported and sponsored the Group over the last twelve months.

Ross Thinee

President