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Murray Cod Size

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Seaweed View Drop Down
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    Posted: 13 Jul 2018 at 4:25pm
Apologies upfront for sticking this request under this thread, but couldn't find a more relevant area.
OK, while on my travels down south after the recent Expo, I journeyed to Balranald in the NSW Riverina.
While taking a general look around, found this brilliant museum run by locals, containing replicas of two models of Kingsford Smiths Southern Cross.
As fascinating as this was, a more fishy subject was displayed on the front window. A photocopy of an original picture taken in 1907 of a 402lb. Murray Cod, this beast was shown hung from a gantry and dwarfed a man standing next to it. The text went on to explain the fish was hit and killed by a paddle steamer in the Wacool R. (hope this spelling is correct, a tributary of the Murray) near Echuca.
To say I was stunned by its mass is an understatement, I had no idea they grew to such proportions, being in the early nineteen hundreds, it obviously had plenty of time to reach this size. It reminded me of huge tropical grouper which attain similar size up my way, several inhabit Darwin harbour.
I kicked myself later, for not taking an image on my phone.
Would be interested to hear from members with similar accounts.
Picture was genuine I believe, not digitally doctored.
Regards, Seaweed.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Ducks Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 Jul 2018 at 5:13pm
Seaweed I remember seeing a discussion about what I think was probably the same picture.
It seems like the same image has popped up in a few places with a few different local tales to go along with it.
How sure were you that it was a Murray Cod?
From that discussion I recall the consensus was that the photo was real - but that the fish was likely a big grouper rather than a cod and the different stories from different places were made up for who knows what reasons.

It might be worth trying to contact this guy:
https://paulhumphriesriverecology.wordpress.com/
He seems to be collating a lot of records of big old cod, including tracking down mounted trophies and such, but I can't find mention on his blog of any stories of a 400lber!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Seaweed Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 Jul 2018 at 5:00pm
Thanks Ducks, I'm no biologist, but it did look a lot like a giant grouper, mouth wise, however having said this, Murray cod do have huge mouths. The image was grainy because of it being copied, I'd say many times, but the story of it being hit by a paddle steamer and in the Wacool R. near Echuca (is this geographically correct?), seemed a good explanation on how it expired. It certainly wouldn't have been line caught, not in 1907.
The man standing next to it was certainly in costume for the era, why would they bother to make a tale up if not genuine. This was a time before sensational news
like these days.
You're the only one who's bothered, kicking myself now for not recording the image. It did startle me seeing the size, what's the largest you've ever seen or heard of?
Seaweed.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote horrorhead Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 Jul 2018 at 8:44pm
Hey Tony, this photo has done the rounds on Facebook a few times but with different areas of capture. The last time I saw it on FB it was supposedly caught west of Toowoomba Qld.

The largest I have heard was a cod in excess of 250 pounds at Surat Qld. Apparently a horse drawn cart was going through the drought stricken Balonne River when it was contacted by the horses and / or the cart and killed. This was supposedly in the late 1800's. I read this in a fishing magazine (which one?) many many years ago.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote DocYarrum Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16 Jul 2018 at 11:01pm
Sorry to take this slightly off topic, however can anyone confirm the largest eel tailed catfish they have heard of?
My old man owned the mail run from Toowoomba to Tenterfield & return trip, some 20+ years ago.
Upon arrival at the Tenterfield post office he would have a 2 hour window which he would use to catch up on sleep before heading backward to Toowoomba.
On school holidays I would tag along occasionally and during the layover we would do some recon and I remember seeing an old photo on the wall of an barber shop (if I recall correctly) of a large catty hanging from a bar that looked to stretch the shoulder height of a grown man. Well over a meter.
Remember the blurb saying it was caught on a 30cm catfish they were using as bait whilst targeting cod.
Not sure if I dreamt it up or not, but it is the one thing that has stayed with me all these years from memories of Tenterfield as I have never seen anything like it since.
Apologies again for hijacking this thread.
Cheers,

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Werriscreekwonda Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17 Jul 2018 at 8:49am
The largest semi official record Cod I know of was caught at Walgett...113kg as I recall, and apparently even it's doubted by some fisho's. Story goes that it was shown off for a penny a peep until it got too whiffy.
Largest cattie was officially 17lb...think that was mentioned in Fish and Fisheries....Silver Perch was 12lb I think.
Yellowbelly 54lbs...caught at Kow swamp.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote puglee62 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17 Jul 2018 at 11:58am
ive heard the paddle steamer story too a long time ago Tony but the fish it killed was supposedly around 200lb cant remember the source sorry.I read somewhere of a record one being caught on a piece of fencing wire with a meathook and large chunk of kangaroo for bait ,i'll see if i can find the story think its in one of my Jack Pollard fishing books
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote puglee62 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17 Jul 2018 at 12:30pm
ok just checked.On page 38 of 'the scream of the reel" by Budget books it mentions bridge builders in 1902 catching a Cod of 250lb at four mile crossing on the Barwon river near Walgett. Bait was kangaroo meat threaded on a borrowed blacksmiths hook with fencing wire as the main line.I'd post a picture of the actual article but it may be an infringement of copyright sorry.Scream of the reel is a fantastic book by the way lots of great stories by renowned fishing writers
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Werriscreekwonda Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17 Jul 2018 at 1:01pm
Thats the one...not really official as far as I know but well recorded.I think it even gets mentioned in an govt. Agfact.
In Fish and Fisheries the largest authentic recorded cod is 125 lb...but a 150 lb fish is mentioned.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote puglee62 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17 Jul 2018 at 8:48pm
Originally posted by Werriscreekwonda Werriscreekwonda wrote:

Thats the one...not really official as far as I know but well recorded.I think it even gets mentioned in an govt. A
it was verified by a local constable and his superior at the time. there is a couple of newspaper articles from that period that mention it but there are no official records unfortunately
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Seaweed Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 18 Jul 2018 at 11:45am
Thanks all, starting to think that the Balranald photo is a furphy, looks more like a giant grouper mocked up as a cod. Never having fished for any freshwater species, except billabong barra and saratoga, I remained ignorant until you guys enlightened me.
Regards, Seaweed.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote rodsncods Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05 Jan 2023 at 5:16pm
old post i know. my uncle was the station master at goondiwindi in the late sixties early seventies. mum and dad would put me on a bus school holidays and send me out to aunty jean and uncle rons place. then , the station masters residence was next to the race course and the station was directly across the course . remember like it was yesterday, uncle ron rang up and told aunty jean to send me over to the station as he had something to show me. i ran straight across the middle to the rail station to see a huge cod on the rail scales. can still see it now, 101 lb, caught in a drum trap out towards the commons above the weir. there was a photo in the local paper. i would have been 10 or twelve at the time , it was bigger than me. things like that stick in your mind. . . .mick
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Ducks Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 06 Jan 2023 at 7:15am
Maybe coincidence that you resurrected this thread today, but this just popped up on my facebook feed (again).
So for posterity here is one version of the image I was referring to circulating on facebook (Some with different stories)
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Seaweed Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 11 Jan 2023 at 10:23am
On seeing this old photo again, now convinced mainly by the mouth, that this is actually a huge Qld. Grouper, looks to be around 500lb plus. What do you all think? 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Cod Classic Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 11 Jan 2023 at 11:18am
Seaweed, you are 100% correct. This photo has done the rounds numerous times with varying stories. 
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