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Fish id

Printed From: The Fishing Website
Category: General Forums
Forum Name: The Fish Tank
Forum Description: Discuss fish species here - ecology, ichthyology, biology, habitats etc
URL: https://www.fishing.net.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=135565
Printed Date: 29 Mar 2024 at 1:50am


Topic: Fish id
Posted By: REIVER
Subject: Fish id
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2021 at 7:30pm
Hi team

Just checking is the bigger tarakihi in the photo a good sized normal tarakihi or a small king tarakihi?





Replies:
Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2021 at 8:38pm
It's a king tarakihi. The 'dent' in the forehead and the black patch on the pectoral fin are indicative of king tarakihi.

I wouldn't say it is small either. Most of the king tarakihi I've seen have been about that size.


Posted By: REIVER
Date Posted: 08 Jun 2021 at 8:03am
Thanks FishMan, I thought so. First one I have ever caught on the reef we were fishing, hopefully there are more there to be plucked from the sea.We get the odd one on a couple of spots at White but this is great.


Posted By: CrayZfish
Date Posted: 15 Aug 2021 at 6:59pm


Interested in your thoughts on this manukau Harbour catch this am. Looks like a bastard red cod but I've never heard of these up here. Used to get them out off Whanganui.

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Why choose either diving or fishing when you can do both. Besides crayfish tail is very good bait!!


Posted By: cirrus
Date Posted: 15 Aug 2021 at 8:12pm
Interesting catch. Could be red cod or nthn bastard red cod. 
Hard to see fins ,but the nthn bastard red cod has a rounded tail,while the Red cod has a squared off tail.
Red cod more likely on open sand, nthn cod more likely over or near rocky terrain.
Great when you catch something outside of the usual. Once caught a good size stargazer in the manukau.


Posted By: CrayZfish
Date Posted: 15 Aug 2021 at 8:27pm
It's tail was eaten off and was only a wee little thing. Looked like a giant slug😁 here's my boy with his interesting catch.

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Why choose either diving or fishing when you can do both. Besides crayfish tail is very good bait!!


Posted By: Fish Addict
Date Posted: 15 Aug 2021 at 8:46pm
Largetooth Beardie Lotella rhacina perhaps?


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 15 Aug 2021 at 9:52pm
Close, but Lotella rhacina is the very closely related rock cod/ rock beardie/ large tooth beardie.
This fish here is what I call a 'mud beardie' - scientific name is Lotella phycis.
The rock beardie is commonly seen diving and can be caught around rocks at night.
The mud beardie lives over soft substrates in harbours and big bays. I have caught it at night off harbour wharves. It has a smaller more rounded snout than its rock dwelling cousin and is a lighter shade of red/brown in colour.

Good catch!


Posted By: Fish Addict
Date Posted: 16 Aug 2021 at 12:04am
I bow to your greater knowledge.
Never caught one, never seen one, other than in photos, but as soon as I saw the pic the name Beardie came to mind.


Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 16 Aug 2021 at 6:40am
Originally posted by FishMan FishMan wrote:

Close, but Lotella rhacina is the very closely related rock cod/ rock beardie/ large tooth beardie.
This fish here is what I call a 'mud beardie' - scientific name is Lotella phycis.
The rock beardie is commonly seen diving and can be caught around rocks at night.
The mud beardie lives over soft substrates in harbours and big bays. I have caught it at night off harbour wharves. It has a smaller more rounded snout than its rock dwelling cousin and is a lighter shade of red/brown in colour.

Good catch!
Are they edible??


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 16 Aug 2021 at 7:08am
Undoubtedly.
Don't ask me if they're worth eating though. Those Lotella species don't grow very big.
I filleted a big bastard cod once out of curiosity. The flesh was infested with worms.



Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 16 Aug 2021 at 7:18am
Originally posted by FishMan FishMan wrote:

Undoubtedly.
Don't ask me if they're worth eating though. Those Lotella species don't grow very big.
I filleted a big bastard cod once out of curiosity. The flesh was infested with worms.

Thanks. 


Posted By: cirrus
Date Posted: 16 Aug 2021 at 8:45am
Have seen one in manukau, near the heads, foul ground. but bigger ,so assume was the Nthn bastard cod.

Seen a few around wellington west coast.. Have always thought of them as "Cloudy bay cod". But searching through books cant find any ref to that name. 
So what is a " Cloudy Bay cod." ?


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 16 Aug 2021 at 11:03am
A common regional name for one of the coastal morid cod fishes.

I have no idea which one


Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 16 Aug 2021 at 12:06pm
While you're on a roll Craig, how do we tell the difference between the bastard red cods and the beardie's?

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Best gurnard fisherman in my street


Posted By: Catchelot
Date Posted: 16 Aug 2021 at 12:32pm
Originally posted by smudge smudge wrote:

While you're on a roll Craig, how do we tell the difference between the bastard red cods and the beardie's?

Size and colour is my guess, Red Cod is more pink with some white...




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"The sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever." - Jacques Cousteau


Posted By: FishMan
Date Posted: 16 Aug 2021 at 4:11pm
Originally posted by smudge smudge wrote:

While you're on a roll Craig, how do we tell the difference between the bastard red cods and the beardie's?


Size, colour and body form.
But that applies to all fish ID. Sometimes there are strong diagnostics features - like a white rim on a fin - sometimes there are not. The morid cods are particularly difficult for an untrained eye. All I can suggest is that you look up the species definitions for each and pin down some identifying features that can easily help you tell the different species apart. I don't know the morid cod group well enough to comment on them.
For fish groups that I do know well (like tropical trevally) it is useful to find out the position of the eye, head measurements, fixed fin colours etc for each species.
Even then it's very easy to be wrong!


Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 16 Aug 2021 at 7:13pm
Originally posted by FishMan FishMan wrote:

Originally posted by smudge smudge wrote:

While you're on a roll Craig, how do we tell the difference between the bastard red cods and the beardie's?


Size, colour and body form.
But that applies to all fish ID. Sometimes there are strong diagnostics features - like a white rim on a fin - sometimes there are not. The morid cods are particularly difficult for an untrained eye. All I can suggest is that you look up the species definitions for each and pin down some identifying features that can easily help you tell the different species apart. I don't know the morid cod group well enough to comment on them.
For fish groups that I do know well (like tropical trevally) it is useful to find out the position of the eye, head measurements, fixed fin colours etc for each species.
Even then it's very easy to be wrong!

Well I'm happy to hear that. I've caught quite a few fish that are 'similar'  to the one pictured from the Manukau harbour. I know plenty of different fish species but I only know what I know and there is a serious lack of knowledge from some recreational fishers.  It is a very interesting subject.

Great post from CraZyFish


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Best gurnard fisherman in my street


Posted By: White snake
Date Posted: 16 Aug 2021 at 11:55pm
Hi all.just thought I would add.one great thing about this forum compared to the many Facebook groups operating is the genuine answers given to questions people ask.You see time and time again on Facebook people posting genuine questions and a large number of the answers are confusing or just pathetic.Would be a real shame to see this forum dissappear their seems to be alot of genuine knowledge and experience on this forum and the information shared and learned is great.


Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 17 Aug 2021 at 6:16am
Originally posted by White snake White snake wrote:

Hi all.just thought I would add.one great thing about this forum compared to the many Facebook groups operating is the genuine answers given to questions people ask.You see time and time again on Facebook people posting genuine questions and a large number of the answers are confusing or just pathetic.Would be a real shame to see this forum dissappear their seems to be alot of genuine knowledge and experience on this forum and the information shared and learned is great.

100% White Snake.


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Best gurnard fisherman in my street



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