ROCK AND SURF
Weather conditions for the coming week end looks favorable for all sorts of angling as the weather man predicts light Easterly winds with low swell which is just what the competitive anglers fishing in the first round of the KZNCAU’S postal competition need to have. Correct decisions from team captains will prove interesting as there are reports of diamond skates on the Zululand beaches and also some shark action in the Transkei. Results next week will prove very interesting.

On the local scene, anglers targeting shad have eventually had some positive results as a few fair size fish have been coming out in the Winkle and Toti areas during the early morning sessions. A few grunter and pompano have been reported along the Illovo stretch particularly in and around the river mouth area. Sand-sharks and some sizable honeycombe rays have kept the heavy tackle anglers busy with most deep water points on both North and South Coasts producing some excellent results.

Dean Pretorius from Port Edward landed a great couta of 18.5kg’s on Tuesday evening at Splash Rock. Dean was using his new Poseidon extra heavy HMG rod and Daiwa Saltiga reel, what a way to christen a new rod.

Dean Pretorius from Port Edward (below).





The Durban area itself has gone a bit quiet with very little fish action being reported. The Durban harbor has for the last couple of weeks fished extremely well (for some fishermen) with both boat and wharf anglers getting some good size grunter. Some of these fish have exceeded the 7 kg mark but there are still plenty of average size fish around.

LETTERS
E-mail received from Shane Gomes.

“Dear all,

I write to give you the details of our research expedition to the Breede River during the week January 19-25.
The purpose of the expedition was to determine whether reports of Zambezi (bull) sharks in the Breede River could be confirmed.

Scientifically, confirmed reports would be extremely relevant on a global scale as this would represent the most south-westerly distribution of bull sharks in Africa.

Joining us on the expedition was Dr. Steve Lamberth and his team from MCM, Hennie Papenfuss from Big Fish Safari and a team of four from SASC. 
We fished for 3 days with no luck & were rewarded on the 4th day when Hennie caught a bull shark on his line. After an hour and a half struggle with the fish (during which it towed him 2.5km further upstream), Hennie managed to tire her enough to bring her close to shore for landing.
Our team then brought her carefully to the shore, where we were able to collect all the required data. 

We measured her, tagged her with two acoustic continuous tags and one spaghetti tag, and gathered genetic samples in order to determine whether bull sharks in the Breede River represent a distinct population from those found elsewhere in South Africa. 
She is a world-record breaking shark measuring 4 metres total length, weighing in the vicinity of 550-600kg. This is the largest bull shark known to science - the previous maximum size was thought to be 3.5 metres TL. We also suspect she was heavily pregnant and may very well be using the Breede as a pupping ground.

Scientifically speaking, this discovery is huge and groundbreaking.
Following the tagging, we proceeded to track her for 43 continuous hours.  She spent the majority of the time in the estuary, with only a few hours in the surf zone just outside the river mouth.
To speak quite frankly, it was the most incredible experience of my life and I am so excited about the research we will continue to do.  One of the major problems is acquiring the funding to continue the research, as it is vitally important we return to the Breede within the next 2 weeks to continue tracking her.

SKI BOAT
Ski boats are still experiencing a great start to the game fish season with dorado taking center stage. These fish are being caught all along the coast in good numbers. Couta are still a little slow on the North Coast but some good numbers have come out at places like the Aliwal Shoal, Scottburgh and Hibberdene areas. Yellow fin tunny have also made an appearance and some good numbers were caught at Aliwal Shoal last week-end. Apart from these fish a variety of kingfish, wahoo and dorado were also landed at this venue. The same can be said for the Protea Banks at Shelly Beach where some very good catches have been reported. News from the Sodwana and Vidal areas is a little less encouraging as recent reports suggest very little action from game fish.

PADDLE SKI
Fishing Ski’s on the South Coast and the Durban area are finding that natal snoek have entrenches themselves in this stretch. These fish are being caught along the Toti and Warner Beach areas as well as Umkomaas all the way down to Mtwalumi. Couta are coming out at these venues but not in great numbers and ski anglers targeting them need to put in some hard work, however the odd dorado and yellow fin tunny inevitably add to the excitement.

The Durban Ski- Boat Club Festival
The Durban Ski- Boat Club Festival is being held on the 25th & 26th April   2009. The main prize for the biggest cuda is a Seacat 565 with 2 x Yamaha 70hp motors, trailer, complete with electronics, safety equipment plus fishing rods and reels worth over R352, 000.00, plus other prizes worth over R550, 000.00. Early bird registration before 31st March 2009 – R225.00, thereafter R295.00. This promises to be, as the last few years, a magnificent competition. Visit www.durbanskiboatclub.co.za for an entry form, or for pre – entries contact Durban Ski – Boat Club Tel: 031 337 9506.

FESTIVE SEASON TRADING HOURS
The trading hours of The Kingfisher over the festive season are as follows: Mon - Fri. 8:00am - 5:00pm Sat. 8:00 - 1:00pm .

KINGFISHER CLINIC
The Kingfisher hosts a free Fishing Ski Clinic on their premises once a month by Markham Pollard. These monthly clinics are there to help beginners and experienced anglers to see what the sport is all about and how to target certain species of fish. It also shows anglers what equipment to use and also elaborates on safety. Over and above this they also hold Rock and Surf clinics run by Ivan Stopforth and a Drop Shot clinic by Lloyd Pereira.
These Clinics are very informative and covers all the basics, including equipment, knots, bait presentation, and tactics. To book for one of these free clinics (except for the month of December) phone the Kingfisher on 031- 368 3903.

Any info about fishing, fish caught or competitions in your area e-mail Mike at kingfish@iafrica.com or fax 031- 368 4137. For the latest KZN fishing news presented by O.J., tune into East Coast Radio at 5.40am Monday - Friday.