queensland big lizards(flattie)

[big al]

can any old fisher folk remember the good old days back in 1959 to 1965 when i was a (little fisher boy) up at golden beach caloundra the bait $ tackle shop which had a tree stump outside with the biggest flattie heads nailed to it THESE LIZARD must have been at least 120cm or even bigger as my pb lizard in the photo( pin on wednesday 30-5-08) was not all that big compared to these heads on that stump has any one got any old photos of these flattie heads as i had some but lost them in 1974 flood or show us all your big flattie photos when they get big over the meter mark they seem to get enormas heads

[Ash]

Im too young to remember back then, but that being said looking at the old dodgy photos on the walls of old tackle stores, they were catching them big and often.

Good news being thanks to the min and max limits the catches of big flatties is on the rise again.

[Angus]

Hopefully with the new size regs we will start seeing more fish like that again. But in photo's bedside the boat not as heads on a wall. My wifes grandfather has a black and white photo taken of at least four flathead in a potatoe sack and the tales are sticking out the top! They would all be over 1m. They were caught in the Bribie Lagoons.

I dont cristise photo's like that though, I genuinely believe the average person back then did not know any better.

Its good to see opinions have changed though.

My biggest is only a bit over 60 but im looking forward to catching some bigger ones!

Angus

[Jordan]

how old do you think a flatty at 1 metre long is? i thinks its strange that there is swarms of smaller flatties in all our creeks/rivers/bays and yet you rareley ever hear of those larger ones being caught..

maybe they are and people just arnt telling anyone?

[bootyinblue]

I too remember the shrines to the big fish!

Down the south coast of NSW (where you can take one dusky over 70cm, and as big sandies as you like) there used to be a tree which was covered in big flathead 'heads'.

I used to stand there in amazement and dream of pulling in 'the big one' one day too...

[jeff f]

there was a tree at brisbane water (near sydney) covered in huge jewfish heads that had been nailed up and varnished

[Angus]

Jordan wrote:

how old do you think a flatty at 1 metre long is? i thinks its strange that there is swarms of smaller flatties in all our creeks/rivers/bays and yet you rareley ever hear of those larger ones being caught..

maybe they are and people just arnt telling anyone?

Jordan I reckon they just copped a serious flogging when you were allowed to keep them.

The number of big ones being caught lately (and released ) is getting much bigger.

I reckon if we keep up good practices we will see even more before to long.

Angus

[Bommie]

Big Al's 99cm was taken a few years before the max limit was introduced and he only kept it because he had no camera and it was proof in a rivarly comp.

[Angus]

Bommie wrote:

Big Al's 99cm was taken a few years before the max limit was introduced and he only kept it because he had no camera and it was proof in a rivarly comp.

Bommie I dont think anyone was having a go at Big Al. Not in the least.

Im just saying I think the rules that have been brought in are a good thing for the future.

Angus

[Jordan]

dont you hate that, when you get a fish that you KNOW no one will believe you caught and you dont have a camera so you end up keeping it to prove it? i did that with a big murry river cod once. has haunted me to this day...

[Shrimpo]

It was like 03 wasnt it when they bought in the new laws for 40-70 for duskies, I reckon from 2010 onwards we will have some big babies being caught, Would love to see increases in size limits for other fish aswell.

[Bommie]

sorry Angus I did not mean anyone was, I thought I would just mention it in case anyone did get the wrong impression, it happened when he first put the pic on a while ago:(

Matt

[Bommie]

Shrimpo wrote:

It was like 03 wasnt it when they bought in the new laws for 40-70 for duskies, I reckon from 2010 onwards we will have some big babies being caught, Would love to see increases in size limits for other fish aswell.

especially for freshwater

[Angus]

The head on this mother Terry caught was dinner plate size and it was only 96cm. Not the word "only" should be used. But you, in comparisson to a meter plus fish.

Id love to see some m+ lizzards posted though. They will be out there.

Angus [img size=400]http://www.australianfishing.com.au/media/kunena/attachments/legacy/images/terry-00da3d39655fb4cc50b8eeaf45911231.jpg

[Angus]

This was the biggest one I have seen in recent times.

Leeann Payne sent this to me only a couple of months ago.

You may have all seen it in Modern Fishing.

The fish was 96- or 97cm's I cant quite remember.

Angus [img size=250]http://www.australianfishing.com.au/media/kunena/attachments/legacy/images/Leeann_r-9a319b71d76b2fdcc7ebfd810fbbd843.jpg

[big al]

my 99cm one [img size=332]http://www.australianfishing.com.au/media/kunena/attachments/legacy/images/img001_AFO-d12cde992ca010035254043543146f74.jpg

[Angus]

Hahaha we are getting closer!

Do we have a genuine 100cm+ photo?

Im pretty sure funfisher had one to be honest...

Angus

[Fishing_Cherry]

wow....seriously nice fish, both Anugus's and Leannes.....wish mine was that big...only having got my kayak recently my pb is only 61cm still i reckon any flathead over 55cm is a good catch for anyone...

[img size=360]http://www.australianfishing.com.au/media/kunena/attachments/legacy/images/resizer_flattie.jpg

[Angus]

Thats Terry not me

Angus

[Fishing_Cherry]

..my bad...nice one TERRY!....cracker of a fish!

[big al]

Angus wrote:

Hopefully with the new size regs we will start seeing more fish like that again. But in photo's bedside the boat not as heads on a wall. My wifes grandfather has a black and white photo taken of at least four flathead in a potatoe sack and the tales are sticking out the top! They would all be over 1m. They were caught in the Bribie Lagoons.

I dont cristise photo's like that though, I genuinely believe the average person back then did not know any better.

Its good to see opinions have changed though.

My biggest is only a bit over 60 but im looking forward to catching some bigger ones!

Angus

angus me and my mates in 1966 to1970 used to go regulary to bribie in our beachbuggys we used to camp at the lagoons for the weekends(arrr the good old days) and used to get out of those lagoons good bream whiting flatties mudcrabs after heavy rain the lagoons would break out into the ocean until the sand would close them up: arrr if only we could turn back time those good old days :our beachbuggies were cutdown vw beetles no body on them just roll bars & seat had no rego the police never worried us we even drove them on the road to the shops (those good old days)

[fishyman]

my dad caught a 112cm one up north, on a homemade lure in 1 foot of water. no photo unfortunatly.

released of course, this was about 7 years ago

[Dan23]

I've got an old photo at my parent's place of a monster I caught when I was a kid on bait. No idea how big though but really big. Was caught on a deserted island off North Keppel though so not that spectacular really. Would have been huge if caught in a local Estuary.

[shortie]

I will see if mum has got a pic of my PB. 105cm at Jacobs Well. Caught on a whole pilly on a 4 gang hook.