A couple in this one shot - hope thats ok.

Sevengiller Shark (Notorynchus cepedianus)

School Shark, Tope, Greyboy (Galeorhinus galeus)

(Can someone please provide a photo)

I decided to include these two together because simialar technquies, gear and tatics are required for both.
They are fairly common shark, often caught on surf beaches during Summer and Autumn, and enclosed coastal waters during the spring.  Sevengillers  are easily identified by their spots, seven gills and flat appearance. They also have several rows of small teeth.   They can be confused with Sixgill sharks, the main difference.... Sixgills grow over 100kg, sevengillers rarely do. Sixgill do not have spots, Sixgill sharks have Six Gills. Sixgill sharks typically occur in deeper water. 

School sharks are commonly caught, they range from a few kgs to around 100kg. They have a more 'generic' shark appearance then Sevengillers. They range from Grey to a pale bronze in Colour.  

Regulations

Check www.Mfish.govt.nz for area specific information.

School shark: In most areas part of the combined daily bag Finfish limit.

(South East Area Bag limit of 5)

Sevengiller: Not a listed Finfish in most fishing areas. 

 (South East area Bag limit of 1)

Bait: They regularly eat most fish baits, Pilchards, Kahawai fillets, whole mullets and Squid if desperate. They do eat Red Cod and Dogfish fillets to but I would not consider them a preferred bait.  The more oily the bait the better in my opinion.  I would avoid using shellfish or crustacean bait when targeting them. 

Burley can help but is not really needed.

Presentation: When fishing surf beaches, I like to cast the bait just behind the first breaker. If the beach is very shallow then longer casts would be required. I find two hours before, and 1 hour after high tide is the best time to target them (probably depends on beach). 

Hooks: 8/0 or larger, circle or recurved hooks to aid in  a quick release. 

Trace: The rig body needs to be made from heavy line, I use around two meters of 250lb. To the hook I would attach a short section of 80lb wire trace. The purpose of the wire trace is to prevent bite offs, the heavy rig body is to protect against the sharks abrasive skin. They do like to roll.  Use strong swivels.  I then use a trace the length of the rod plus same of 40lb, just as extra insurance against abrasion. 

Fight: Sevengillers have a lot of fight to begin with, but tire quite quickly.  A trick, if you remove pressure they are quite likely to stop fighting and rest on the bottom. So if you receive a double strike, just let one rest while landing the other.

School Sharks are less likely to rest up and can fight hard or gentle depending on the shark.

Landing/Release: Use the surf to bring them in close, then grab the 250lb rig body... be careful of the bitey end. Gentle pull and maneuver the shark up the beach. I like to keep them on the edge of the surf. A bit wetter but nicer on the sharks.

I take three tools, long nose pliers, hook removers and wire cutter. If the pliers or removers can not reach the hook, then simply cut the hook or trace with the cutters. maneuver the shark back to the water edge and gently push in with the out going surf.  Do not pull or swing the shark around by the tail, they have weak bones and prone to organ damage. Treat them gently before release.  If they must be carried consider taking a fish sling to help even out the pressure. 

Eating: If desperate they can be eaten, but I would stick to the smaller specimens. Bleed, Gut and trunk and put on ice for the best eating. 

Blue Moki (Latridopsis ciliaris)

These little fellows live in weed and rocks around most of our coast, they do travel into the surf break during the night to feed. They can be caught or speared during the day, but many more come out of hiding in the evenings.  They rarely grow larger then 10kg. 

Regulations

Check www.fish.govt.nz for area specific information.

They are part of the combined daily bag limit in most fishing areas. They have a size limit of 40cm.

(South East Area Bag limit 15)
(Southland Area Bag limit 15)
(FiordLand Area Bag limit 15)

Bait: These little fellows love shellfish and  crustacean, does not seem to matter if its cooked or raw. Bring a selection because they can be fussy at times. They would sometimes take squid. Mussels is a top bait choice so is raw/cooked shrimp and prawns. Some people like to use Crayfish but I consider thats a waste. Wrapping two or three whole mussels onto a hook is a good way to tempt the bigger ones. 

Burley does help bring them in, use shellfish ones. If the burley contains fish then chances are you would attract dogfish, red cod and other undesirable species.  They are also attracted to light. 

Location: They can be found around the entire coast, but probably more common south of the Coromandel.   During the day look for rocky, weedy kelpy regions.    After dark, they leave the protection of the foul and feed along the surf break.  Try and look for gaps in the foul to minimise snags. Like most fish, they like a bit of current or movement in the water. 

Hooks:  I use 2/0 to 4/0 circles. 

Rig:  I keep things simple... if surf-casting I would use a standard pulley or ledger rig.  Rock or boat fishing would stick to stray lining to minimize tackle loses.  

Fight: Comparable to similar size Snapper. 

Landing/Release:  Just like a Snapper. Remove the hook and place gently back into the water. Pliers and hook removers make things easier. If you must hold onto the fish use a wet towel, or at least wet your hands before handling.  The use of a landing net might makes things a bit easier and kinder on the Moki. 

Spearing: They are one of the easiest fish to spear, popular target for novices.  Just move slowly and non-threating and they would swim in for a better look. Leave the big old guys because they are cool to have around and can be quite friendly at times. 

Eating: I do not rate them highly,  Bleed and gut  then put on ice for the best eating.  They seem to be popular smoked (probably to hide their flavor) but I release most of the ones I catch. 

Rig, Lemon Fish, Spotted Smooth Hound (Mustelus lenticulatus) 

They are easily confused with Spiky Dogfish another shark of similar size. The main differences

- Rig have a pad, Dogfish have teeth.

- Rig have many more and smaller spots.

- Rig do not have a spike, Dogfish have a spike. 

- Dogfish would not take Crab baits. 

Regulations

They are part of the combined daily bag limit in most fishing areas. They have no size limit.

They have a Bag limit of 5 in the three southern management areas.

Location: They can be found around the entire coast,  they more common in our southern waters during the summer months, but seem to be around year round further north.  They can be caught during the day but are more common after dark.  Like most surf species, I target them just behind the first breaker, but sometimes longer casts bring results especially on gentle sloping beaches. 

Hooks: I use 4/0 circles. 

Landing/Release:  Use the surf to help beach, upon landing they would twist, turn and be a complete pain to remove the hook from. The large ones are slightly less wiggly then the small ones. If planning on keeping, a hammer blow to the head does slow them down. 

Salmon

These guys can be caught both in sea and as they run up the rivers to spawn. The most popular salmon rivers are the Rangitata, Waimakariri and Rakaia but reasonable runs occur up all sizable Canterbury rivers.  They also enter rivers right around the South Island. A handful occasionally run up rivers in the North Island but its a rare event.  

There is a sizable fishery in Dunedin Habour,  and farm escapes are caught in the Marlborough Sounds and other areas where Salmon farming occurs.  There are also lake based and canal based populations.

Regulations

Check F&G regulation books for the freshwater fisheries.

Salmon caught in the Sea are treated slightly differently from other fish, for starts they can only be taken on rod and running line. No spearing, netting ect... They typically have no size limit except for in Otago Harbor where the limit is 45cm.  

These a national bag limit of 4, except for South East and Southland where the limit is 2. 

Most would be taken on lures.  Anglers at the river mouths try and cast a weight forward ticer as far as possible into the Surf. They do this for days and they might get lucky and catch one. They typically cast heavy ticers up to 85g in weight. Other anglers fish in the river gut, there they use Zed Spinners.  There is also a strange method using a the lure rod, they flick out  flies  weighted down with a ball sinker. 

Further upriver, the use of Zed Spinners (about 22g) and Colorado Spoons are more popular, they are cast across pools and allowed to drift down bouncing along the bottom. One experience River angler once told me he averages a Salmon for every 40 hours spent on the river. The best water conditions to target Salmon is when its milky after a fresh or small flood.  Learning to read the rivers and identifying likely holding water is a important skill to learn. 

In Otago Harbor anglers often livebait for Salmon.  

Marble Fish, Marble Trout, kelpie (Aplodactylus arctidens) 

They can be confused with Butterfish, but once both have been seen they are easy to tell apart. Butterfish are dark with bands, while marble fish have pattern of white dots. They appear brown underwater but darken once dead.

I do not beleive they are listed as a Finfish in any fishery management areas. That means no size or bag limit. But still check the regulations for your local area before taking one. 

Bait: I can not remember ever taking one on the bait, but I would suggest to use the same bait as when targeting Butterfish. So corn Kernel, peas, sea weed pieces, small piece of prawn, mussel or squid. 

Hooks: I would use small hooks, so 2/0 or smaller. Would not go smaller then size 10. 

The ministry of fisheries also has a good Fish ID section.  They provide clear photos and regulations of most commonly caught fin fish.

http://www.fish.govt.nz/en-nz/Recreational/Most+Popular+Species/Fish+Identification/default.htm - http://www.fish.govt.nz/en-nz/Recreational/Most+Popular+Species/Fish+Identification/default.htm

One word of warning, the regulations are sometimes out of date or plain wrong. I have contacted fisheries about the errors I found but they never responded.  

Was at the wharf catching some yellowtail for bait then saw the rod flicker as if I had bites then just went dead. Eventually another yellowtail got hooked and reeled it in.

On the bottom hook was this weird looking fish and was wondering what kind of fish this is.

When I got it up on to the wharf it didn't even flap around.. just lied there.

Yeah, it had two whisker things around the chin area..

Fairly sure its a pigfish