The whiting are biting. These tasty little fish are a mainstay of winter fishing. When the glamour fish of summer swim away to their winter haunts and warmer water, whiting stay behind to provide sport and groceries for anglers throughout the cold, wet, dreary winter we love so much.
What is the best month to catch whiting?
summer
Whiting congregate in the summer for spawning, hence the term ‘Summer Whiting’. The summer is probably the best time to target Whiting but they are available all year round.
What is the best bait for winter whiting?
It’s no secret that whiting eat worms, prawns, yabbies or squid and all of these baits will work on different days, however fresh bait is the best bait. Live bait is even better, be it worms, yabbies or prawns, with blood and wriggler worms being a perfect bait for big whiting.
What is the best bait to catch whiting fish?
The all time preferred bait for whiting has to be FRESH shrimp, preferably live. I like to use a piece of the shrimp, no larger than the last joint on your little finger. These fish have small mouths and CANNOT get a large piece of bait in their mouth.
Can you catch whiting all year round?
Whiting can be caught all year round however they are more active in the warmer months. December through to March seem to be the most productive locally. From a fishing point of view, the best times to target them are the first hours of sunrise and the last hours of sunset and on the peak of tide changes.
Are whiting active at night?
One surprising thing in the more defined rivers is that whiting fishing is often at its best at night. Any sand whiting over 40 cm long is a great fish. There are many ways to fish the flats, but one of the most exciting methods, using bait, is to sight cast the fish as you walk the flats.
Are whiting hard to catch?
Whiting are actually quite easy to find however they do move about quite a bit but when you get them going it is easy to catch a great feed. Whether fishing in Port Phillip Bay or Western Port, whiting inhabit the same type of ground, basically anywhere that is sandy with healthy weed beds.
What is the difference between winter and summer Whiting?
“Trumpeter (winter) whiting have a silvery grey back with a paler belly featuring a silver horizontal band,” he said. “Sand (summer) whiting are uniformly silver (no blotches) with the pectoral, pelvic and anal fins being pale yellowish.
What size hooks for whiting?
Both circle hooks and long shank hooks are popular, with a size #4-6 ‘J’ hook suitable for bay work, and loosely a size #4 to 2/0 for deep water whiting.
What size hook should I use for whiting?
The best hook size for surf fishing for pompano and whiting is a #1 or 1/0 circle hook. This is the perfect size range for catching tons of whiting, croakers and pompano using sand fleas or fish bites.
Does whiting bite on low tide?
They bite freely by day or night and when they are hungry, at any state of the tide — but generally an early flood tide is best, as this keeps the fish swimming towards the shore in search of food. To secure most fun fishing for sand whiting should be done on very light tackle with small hooks, say, sizes No.
Can you catch whiting in the day?
Whiting form into large, loose shoals and hunt for food, tending to stay in slightly deeper water during daylight, but at night they move into shallower water to feed meaning that catches often pick up once the sun has begun to set.
What do whiting fish eat?
They feed on shrimp, krill, and pelagic schooling fish, such as eulachon and Pacific herring. As whiting grow larger, fish make up a greater part of their diet. Many fish-eating species, such as lingcod and Humboldt squid, prey on Pacific whiting.
Does whiting have teeth?
Whiting are the best option for newbies, tourists or kids to cut their teeth on when trying their hand at beach fishing.
Where are winter Whiting found?
eastern Australia
Also known as winter whiting or diver whiting, trumpeter whiting are endemic to eastern Australia and can be found in inshore areas from north of Cairns to eastern Victoria. This species first became known to science in 1824 from specimens collected in Sydney Harbour.
How big is winter whiting?
Fish Description:
This species has a silvery brown back and a pale belly. The back and sides have numerous dark blotches and the pectoral fin has a black spot at its base. This species matures at around 15-18 cm long (1-3 years old). Growth virtually ceases after the 4th year, and maximum age is around 12 years.
Can you catch whiting in dirty water?
Another reason why you might not catch whiting is that you’re fishing in water that is too clear as whiting love to feed in the dirty water.
Is whiting fish a bottom feeder?
Whiting swim in large shoals and are mid to bottom feeders. They can be found off beaches. They can be used for lots different recipes..
How big can whiting keep?
Possession limit: The maximum number of fish a person is allowed to have in their possession at any one time.
Finfish bag and size limits.
| Species | Whiting |
|---|---|
| Whiting | |
| Size limits or legal length (cm) | (sand only) 27 cm |
| Bag limit | 20 in total* |
What color attracts fish at night?
green
That’s because their wavelengths vary, and some can penetrate the water better than others. When choosing a light source for night fishing, the best color to use and attract fish is green or a mixture of green and white. These colors can penetrate around 70 to 75 feet deep underwater.
Do whiting bite lures?
While whiting are a smaller species they can be caught on a variety of lures even fairly large offerings, but without a doubt small vibe lures work best, and running assist hooks instead of trebles will improve your catches a lot as they do have small mouths and are great at throwing hooks.