MORE than one million Murray cod feedlings have been released into the Loddon River over the last decade following a pre-Christmas batch of 195,000 being tipped into local waters.
Victorian Fisheries Authority staff were helped by angling enthusiast Kevin Ferguson with drops between Newbridge and Serpentine.
“Since 2014, we’ve stocked 936,000 golden perch into the Loddon and 855,564 Murray cod plus the 195,000 we stocked in the days before Christmas ... over a million over a decade,” said authority spokesman Joel Peterson.
More than a quarter of restocking came after the October 2022 flood emergency.
The Loddon River’s latest Murray cod restocking also included 35,000 feedlings near Kerang.
The authority said the total river cod release was 15,000 more cod than planned “given availability of fish and decent conditions”.
According to Mr Ferguson, anglers were snagging good catches on the Loddon River this summer.
He said support from Victoria Fisheries Authority had boosted local angling prospects.
““The Murray cod is a unique fish, one of the largest freshwater fish in the world. More people are getting out along the Loddon having fun and catching them,” he said.
Mr Ferguson said good cod catches were being reported before dawn and in the evening between Newbridge and Serpentine. “Cod are easily scared by the sun so you won’t catch them during the day.”
He said there had been reports over the Christmas-New Year period of good yellow belly catches.
However, Mr Ferguson said European carp were a problem for anglers along the river.
““They are basically a plague. I can launch a boat at Bridgewater and you don’t see any and then the fish finder picks them up,” he said.
“I would estimate that carp are making up 80 per cent of the fish population.”
But Mr Ferguson believes the strong release program of Murray cod into the Loddon River will help combat the carp. “Carp are less likely to eat cod.”
Mr Ferguson said fishing was going well on the river between Laanecorrie and Serpentine. “If you go out and don’t get any on one day, it’s just that’s a bad day and the fish are not biting.”
After the 2022 floods, he said: “I fish a fair stretch of the Loddon targeting mainly Murray cod and golden perch, anywhere between Laanecoorie Weir all the way through Serpentine to the Loddon Weir, including some prime spots between Newbridge and Bridgewater.
“I do a fair amount of walking the banks and kayaking and fishing feels to be better than ever.
North Central Catchment Management Authority says its environmental water flows “give native fish an advantage over carp so in the long term we see the balance sway back the way we want it”.