Luringbream Posted January 1, 2007 Share Posted January 1, 2007 (edited) Gday all, went out yesterday to try the new sounder out hoping to master the art of sounding. I ended up purchasing a Furuno LS4100 thanks to all who replied to my numerous posts about finding the right sounder and who gave some good advice. Its a great sounder! On the way out, we saw 3 schools or pods, or whatever they are called, of penguins!! They were in groups of 3-5 and swimming on the surface heading towards the Harbour bridge probably wanting to get front row seats to the fireworks! Tried to get pics but everytime we neared they'd dissapear then re-appear a minute later 40-50 metres away. I thought getting a few squid first up and then heading into middle harbour would be a good option, due to all the baitfish and kingies that are in there atm. We found the squidding tough, only getting a few including this little baby that was no longer than the 2g jig. (We kept him alive so if we found a school of kingfish, we could just pin him through a single hook and drop him over and convert him into a kingie!!) After a few, we decided to check out what was happening at the north head. Upon arrival there were 2-3 boats slow trolling just before the point, i didnt see anyone raise a fish so we went back in and hit another spot for squid as we couldnt get outside. (I read somewhere in another post that the kingies were really on at the heads so im spewing i didnt stay that extra bit longer!!) Back to the squid, first cast and hooked what seemed like big squid or small cuttle, however we didnt get to see this one. Next cast and i was on to a 3-4kg cuttlefish big long pulses and small runs then GONE! Next cast, as with the first two i was jigging hard and i got hit again. This time it was definently a squid..a big squid and after a short fight we had him in the net. His carapace went 41cm!! I considered putting him on live if we found a school of kings and a hoodlum was spotted. Anyways into middle harbour the sounder goes on and we started the troll around moored boats and shorelines. We picked up bait schools and drop offs but for some reason, we didnt see too many fish on the sounder. In fact we didnt see more than 10 fish in total for the day, i dont think thats right. (could be a setting problem with the sounder??) Bait schools were easily picked up, but its just the fish themselves, be it a kingie a bream or a trevally, my sounder wont pick up fish?? Well, very few..if that! Anyone have any suggestions? Also, for anyone else that went out yesterday, what was the water temp? Mine showed 22-23 in the harbour and in MH..Does that seem right? Anyways after killing 2 hours and getting no strikes, no touches, no nothing we decided to call it quits..The squid hadnt even been touched by pickers!! Still havn't got myself a MH kingie yet, i just cant work out that system. Wasn't too worried about not getting a fish, i was more concerned on learning more about my sounder and all of its functions and modes etc. After having that small squid in my esky, i wonder if its possible to maintain one in a fish tank? I really want one now!! DAN Edited January 1, 2007 by Luringbream Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KingsRule Posted January 1, 2007 Share Posted January 1, 2007 Shame about the kingies mate, but DAMN thats a massive sydney squid Seems whenever the squid are able to be caught the kings arnt..(in my case anyway) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
netic Posted January 1, 2007 Share Posted January 1, 2007 Mate that is one massive squid, shame you couldnt get onto any kings...MH takes a while to figure out but once you find your spots its all easy from there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bastik Posted January 1, 2007 Share Posted January 1, 2007 Nice squid. Tell me, as I have never tasted kingies before. But do you think a feed on a kingy is better than a feed on squid. My first choice would of been the squid but then again I havent tried kingy. cheers b Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest johblow Posted January 1, 2007 Share Posted January 1, 2007 "We kept him alive so if we found a school of kingfish, we could just pin him through a single hook and drop him over and convert him into a kingie!!" Sounds like a fair trade to me!!! :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted January 1, 2007 Share Posted January 1, 2007 Niiiiice squid,thats a beauty,i would of whacked him on the bbq pronto, bad luck about no Kings penguin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big_steve Posted January 1, 2007 Share Posted January 1, 2007 wat a mother of a squid id be proud of that.. on the king front bad luck mate but im sure with ur new sounder ul soon find them and get stuck in2 them, dont give up and keep trying cheers steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squidboy Posted January 1, 2007 Share Posted January 1, 2007 Gday all, went out yesterday to try the new sounder out hoping to master the art of sounding. I ended up purchasing a Furuno LS4100 thanks to all who replied to my numerous posts about finding the right sounder and who gave some good advice. Its a great sounder! I thought getting a few squid first up and then heading into middle harbour would be a good option, due to all the baitfish and kingies that are in there atm. We found the squidding tough, only getting a few including this little baby that was no longer than the 2g jig. (We kept him alive so if we found a school of kingfish, we could just pin him through a single hook and drop him over and convert him into a kingie!!) After a few, we decided to check out what was happening at the north head. Upon arrival there were 2-3 boats slow trolling just before the point, i didnt see anyone raise a fish so we went back in and hit another spot for squid as we couldnt get outside. (I read somewhere in another post that the kingies were really on at the heads so im spewing i didnt stay that extra bit longer!!) Back to the squid, first cast and hooked what seemed like big squid or small cuttle, however we didnt get to see this one. Next cast and i was on to a 3-4kg cuttlefish big long pulses and small runs then GONE! Next cast, as with the first two i was jigging hard and i got hit again. This time it was definently a squid..a big squid and after a short fight we had him in the net. His carapace went 41cm!! I considered putting him on live if we found a school of kings and a hoodlum was spotted. Anyways into middle harbour the sounder goes on and we started the troll around moored boats and shorelines. We picked up bait schools and drop offs but for some reason, we didnt see too many fish on the sounder. In fact we didnt see more than 10 fish in total for the day, i dont think thats right. (could be a setting problem with the sounder??) Bait schools were easily picked up, but its just the fish themselves, be it a kingie a bream or a trevally, my sounder wont pick up fish?? Well, very few..if that! Anyone have any suggestions? Also, for anyone else that went out yesterday, what was the water temp? Mine showed 22-23 in the harbour and in MH..Does that seem right? Anyways after killing 2 hours and getting no strikes, no touches, no nothing we decided to call it quits..The squid hadnt even been touched by pickers!! Still havn't got myself a MH kingie yet, i just cant work out that system. Wasn't too worried about not getting a fish, i was more concerned on learning more about my sounder and all of its functions and modes etc. After having that small squid in my esky, i wonder if its possible to maintain one in a fish tank? I really want one now!! Hi there fellow raider, Nice squid there mate, especially within the harbour. Keeping squid live in a tank is a real pain. I have managed to keep them alive for a day but it gets real hard after that. You need to run two tanks so when they squirt their ink you can change the water. Also Squid can also die under alot of stress so you probably need a rather large tank even 50 litres to keep a small squid alive. Hope this helps. I usually catch my squid the night before and put them in a dark drum with an airater and a heater at about 19 degrees. The only problem i have is finding where to troll my squjd in MH!!!! DAN Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luringbream Posted January 1, 2007 Author Share Posted January 1, 2007 Thanks guys, i didnt think that photo did the squid justice, it's dead and all floppy and looks alot smaller than it did when it came out of the water with wings flared. Mate that is one massive squid, shame you couldnt get onto any kings...MH takes a while to figure out but once you find your spots its all easy from there. We do get them a tad bigger then that in the winter months however during summer the bigguns tend to be a bit more sporadic. I think this is due to them laying their offspring.. Nice squid. Tell me, as I have never tasted kingies before. But do you think a feed on a kingy is better than a feed on squid. My first choice would of been the squid but then again I havent tried kingy. cheers b Theres no doubt that you will like the kingies, they are a beautiful fish but in comparison to squid that is up to you. I dont really eat much squid however the rents can't get enough of them. I'd prefer a kingie cutlet, or should i say 'cutlets' any day! Hope this helps. I usually catch my squid the night before and put them in a dark drum with an airater and a heater at about 19 degrees. The only problem i have is finding where to troll my squjd in MH!!!! Haha, i have the exact same problem! I have no idea where to troll my squid in MH, this was my second attempt and it was just as bad as the first. (although i was busted up big time on the first session) I dont think i explained myself correctly, but as stupid as the idea sounds, i want a squid in a marine fish tank as a pet. After watching it in the bait tank all day and seeing it go from brown to caramel to white etc i decided i wanted to take it home and keep it alive. I quickly called the local fish shop and asked them if they could keep it there for a few days whilst i set up a good tank, but they turned me down and told me to come back on the 2nd jan when they 're-open'. By this stage the squid had been in the bait tank for almost 12 hours and he looked really lively. I set up a little tank for him with an aerator and set the temp at 20C but surely after another 8 hours he died! It was a stupid attempt but i was surprised he even stayed alive for 20 hours. DAN Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrasseman Posted January 1, 2007 Share Posted January 1, 2007 After having that small squid in my esky, i wonder if its possible to maintain one in a fish tank? I really want one now!! DAN Southern calamari are certainly not the easiest animals in an aquarium as they are fairly delicate and have fairly high water quality requirements and a need fairly large live food. Nonetheless it can be done but not really a home excercise and mortality rates are very high. My best was two animals that lived for 157 and 162 days respectively (maximum life span is about 8 months in nature). If you want to keep a cephalopod, occys are pretty cool but you need a good tight lid on the tank. Alternately, my favourite is this little tacker, Euprymna tasmanica the southern dumpling squid, they occur from north of sydney south to WA including Tasmania and are pretty cool in an aquarium (prob. good bait to). They grow to about golf ball size, are very hardy, live for about 6 months max., feed easily on small live shrimp but will also take crabs, fish and even artemia and are easily collected by wading sandflats at night with a torch. They are a bioluminescent species though so may cause probs in community tanks. Apologies for the dodgy photo... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riggem Posted January 2, 2007 Share Posted January 2, 2007 thats one massive squid,well done. better luck next time on the kings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CR@ZY OS@M@ Posted January 2, 2007 Share Posted January 2, 2007 nice squid mate, pitty on the the kings though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luringbream Posted January 2, 2007 Author Share Posted January 2, 2007 Southern calamari are certainly not the easiest animals in an aquarium as they are fairly delicate and have fairly high water quality requirements and a need fairly large live food. Nonetheless it can be done but not really a home excercise and mortality rates are very high. My best was two animals that lived for 157 and 162 days respectively (maximum life span is about 8 months in nature). If you want to keep a cephalopod, occys are pretty cool but you need a good tight lid on the tank. Alternately, my favourite is this little tacker, Euprymna tasmanica the southern dumpling squid, they occur from north of sydney south to WA including Tasmania and are pretty cool in an aquarium (prob. good bait to). They grow to about golf ball size, are very hardy, live for about 6 months max., feed easily on small live shrimp but will also take crabs, fish and even artemia and are easily collected by wading sandflats at night with a torch. They are a bioluminescent species though so may cause probs in community tanks. Apologies for the dodgy photo... That little tacker looks cool, ive read up a little on him and the others and there are a wide range of different squid species that i never knew about. I wont be able to get my hands on one of them though, as they are well out of my area, however i will attempt to raise a southern calamari. 8 months is a pretty short lifespan for the squid and a very interesting fact, they must grow a 2-300 grams per month!! We also get many occies and i wouldnt mind having a little one in the tank but they seem a little boring to me. They dont really do much and they dont offer as much as the calamari do. What did you feed them and how big did they grow after 160 days? DAN Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barrykrocker Posted January 2, 2007 Share Posted January 2, 2007 nice squid mate what water depth did you you take it in? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luringbream Posted January 3, 2007 Author Share Posted January 3, 2007 nice squid mate what water depth did you you take it in? He was taken in 8ft of water, i think thats 2.4m. We did the same surface fishing for them over the kelp beds but just decided to drift into a deeper patch of water which a reef ran into. DAN Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrasseman Posted January 3, 2007 Share Posted January 3, 2007 That little tacker looks cool, ive read up a little on him and the others and there are a wide range of different squid species that i never knew about. I wont be able to get my hands on one of them though, as they are well out of my area, however i will attempt to raise a southern calamari. 8 months is a pretty short lifespan for the squid and a very interesting fact, they must grow a 2-300 grams per month!! We also get many occies and i wouldnt mind having a little one in the tank but they seem a little boring to me. They dont really do much and they dont offer as much as the calamari do. What did you feed them and how big did they grow after 160 days? DAN Yeah, they grow pretty quick in nature but I found feeding a problem with very high mortalities overcthe first few days post hatch. I fed them mysids and small palaemonas shrimp but small finfish would probably be better after feeding has commenced. Growth for my calamari was appalling though, with the longest lived animal only reaching 62mm DML likely to do with malnutrition and small tank size (4000L recirc. sysytem). By catching small squid that are already feeding you may have more success but tank size and food will still be major issues and water quality could be problematic. Let me know how you go. Col. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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