Fishing: Break out the net - it's time to dine like kings and queens

Rules cover the size of whitebaiting nets, but there is no limit on the size of catches and they can be sold without licence. Photo / Geoff Thomas

Whitebait can cost $200 a kilo in the shop, but anyone can go out and catch a feed.

The whitebait season opened today, and whitebaiters will be out on the river banks at Port Waikato, the Bay of Plenty and Taranaki looking for their first catch.

Traditionally, the fishing starts slowly and improves throughout the spring.

The name whitebait is a generic one, applied to myriad tiny fish all over the world. An imported variety is available in supermarket frozen food sections, but the white "Chinese whitebait" are tasteless when compared to the real thing.

New Zealand whitebait are the juveniles of different species of native fish - inanga, koaro and kokopu. Banded kokopu are the most common of this family, known as galaxiids, but rare species such as giant kokopu, dwarf kokopu and short-jawed kokopu are found in some parts of the country.

In the North Island, the bulk of the catch is inanga and, like all whitebait, the fish caught in the lower sections of rivers and streams are migrating upstream from the sea.

Adult fish travel downstream from rivers and streams in March and April and lay their eggs on the highest tide of the month on grasses along the water's edge where the tidal saltwater reaches upstream.

The eggs remain high and dry, protected by a sticky membrane, until the next king tide a month later when they hatch and the baby fish are washed out to sea where they grow quickly, returning to the river in spring as whitebait.

Natural attrition is high with the young fish falling prey to birds and fish. Then they have to run the gauntlet of nets until they reach the safety of the river where they grow into adults and continue the cycle.

Once a resource that was so plentiful that surplus whitebait were fed to chickens or dug into the vegetable garden as fertiliser, 'bait has become a rare delicacy, a luxury for those who have to buy it. In Auckland supermarkets you can pay $20 for 100 grams, equating to $200 a kilo. And that is only enough for a couple of miserable fritters that will be more flour and egg than fish.

A true whitebait fritter, according to the aficionados, has just enough separated egg white to bind the tiny fish. Add a dash of salt and pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice and you have a dish fit for royalty. And whitebait is usually on the menu when royalty does make the journey from London.

Whitebait fishing is administered by DoC, not the Ministry of Fisheries, because they are native fish. Unlike other fishing there is no limit to the catch and the delicacies can be sold without a licence. But there are rules. The season runs until November 30, and fishing is permitted from 5am to 8pm, or when daylight saving starts, from 6am to 9pm. Nets may not cover more than a third of a stream or river, to allow room for fish to swim upstream safely, and the size of nets is limited.

Theories abound as to the best fishing times, but an incoming tide is acknowledged as the trigger when the long, thin fish, which are poor swimmers, use the surging current to combat the river currents. Moon phases and weather all come into the equation as discussion rages around a jug in the local pub.

A good indicator of whitebait are the kahawai which follows the schools of tiny fish, and these can be hooked on silver lures like the Ticer, or on trout fly tackle with smelt flies. Large numbers of birds at the river mouth is another sign of whitebait running.

But when everything comes together, and the net is raised bulging with the "white gold" the smiles are unstoppable.

Fresh Water
Four new categories of trout fishing licence will be introduced when the new season starts on October 1.

Fish and Game says this follows extensive research and means anglers will be able to buy the licence which best fits their lifestyle.

The new categories include a loyal-senior's licence which rewards those who have been consistent buyers of licences for many years, and will cost $104 for the year. To qualify, an angler must be over 65 and have held an adult whole season licence for at least the previous five years.

The local-area licence is for those who want to fish in only one region, and costs $99 for the season.

One-day licences will drop in price from $25 to $20, and a new short-break licence at $45 is good value for three days, which will cover a long weekend. The other new type is the long-break licence which gives nine days of fishing for $87 and allows fishing, for example, over two weekends and the week in between.

Regular whole season licences covering the whole country (except for Taupo which is administered by DoC) are still available at $124, and family licences are $167.

The four new licences will be available online only, and Fish and Game says it will continue to look at other possible licence categories.

Last year a new non-resident licence was introduced for overseas visitors which brought New Zealand into line with other countries.

Bite times
Bite times are 12.15am and 12.40pm today, and 1am and 1.20pm tomorrow.

Tip of the week
A marker on the bottom of the river is useful for spotting whitebait as they swim upstream. It may be a board painted white but this has to be weighted. A section of white plastic downpipe works well, and is laid on the bottom at right angles to the bank.

• More fishing action on Rheem Outdoors with Geoff, 5pm today, TV3, and at GTTackle.co.nz.