Ozfish: Don’t forget the little guys
by Sean P. Graham, Ozfish
Let’s chat about the little guys in the water, those small fish we often overlook. In Australia, when people go fishing, they’re usually focused on the big catches like Murray cod and trout cod. But what about the little ones? The ones we call “gudgeons,” “guppies,” or just “white bait”? These small fish might not be the stars of the fishing world, but they sure deserve some attention.
Most of the native fish in Australia are actually small. Take the Murray Darling Basin, for instance. Out of all the fish species there, only about six are big enough to get anglers excited. The rest? They’re these cool little creatures like rainbowfish, Hardyheads, Galaxias, Perchlets, Pygmy Perches, and Gudgeons.
What’s wild is that most of these fish are found only in Australia, but sadly, they’re close to extinction. More than half of them in the Basin are threatened or endangered.
To see how one of our Women in Landcare finalists – Janet Heffernan – is doing to reverse this trend visit: Don’t Forget About The Little Guys | OzFish Unlimited
