Welcome to Southern Bass Fishing Club Inc.
The club objectives are to:
- Bring Awareness to the Bass, their habitat, their numbers and the future of the species.
- Foster the benefits of catch and release fishing.
- Collect data and maintain records of Bass captures for future reference, with information to be released at the discretion of the club.
Breeding & Habitat
Australian Bass occur naturally throughout the freshwater and brackish reaches of the many coastal river systems of N.S.W restricted only by impassable barriers like waterfalls, weirs and dams.
Aquatic and terrestrial life forms such as small fish, frogs and insects form the bulk of the varied diet.
Distinguishing features of Australian Bass and Estuary Perch
Estuary Perch 
Australian Bass
Bass can grow to a length in excess of 600mm, however wild fish over 500mm are increasingly rear.
During the winter months Bass travel downstream to the brackish reaches to spawn. Spring sees them heading back up to the freshwater reaches where they remain, somewhat territorial throughout the warmer months.
Fishing Techniques
Being such aggressive predators, Bass can be caught quite readily using lures and flies. They can also be caught using fresh bait but this is not recommended method because of the high mortality rate when all or most of the fish caught are to be released.
The most common method by far is lure fishing, which can be divided into two broad categories – Surface Lures and Diving Lures,
Surface Lures are known as poppers, fizzers and crawlers. They are designed to imitate insects such as cicadas, moths, crickets and the like struggling on the surface. Casting around snaggy cover in the early morning or late afternoon can bring explosive results.
Diving Lures or wobblers are designed to imitate baitfish, prawns or yabbies. They work best when flicked around cover like trees, weed beds or rocky edges. They can be cast and retrieved or trolled.
Flies offer a more subtle and challenging approach and often appeal to the more experienced Bass enthusiast.
Catch & Release
Help us to protect one of our premier native sports fish by practicing and promoting a catch and release style of Bass fishing. It is suggested that fish destined for release be handled as little and as carefully as possible in order to maximize the chance of survival. This can include releasing fish while still in the water, wetting hands before handling fish and crushing barbs or using barbless hooks.
Maintenance of natural breeding stocks is the best way to ensure a healthy Bass fishery in the future and to this end N.S.W Fisheries having to put in place strict bag and size limits.
We can all play a part in protecting our sports by observing these limits and reporting illegal activities to Fisheries.
Remember, a fishing licence is required when fishing.
BAG & SIZE LIMITS
Bag limit 2 in total (one or more species of Bass or Perch, only 1 over 35 centimeters m in rivers. Maximum 4 fish in total possession.
CLOSURE – AUSTRALIAN BASS/ESTUARY PERCH
All rivers and estuaries except dams and rivers above impoundments.
1 MAY TO 31 AUGUST
