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Hooking Up Anglers Since 2011.
19 December, 2025
Pic of the Week goes to Vince from New Zealand for this cracking queenfish caught on fly aboard @shallowwatersafaris in Exmouth!
Tag #recfishwest in your posts or send them via DM to our Instagram @recfishwest—don’t forget to include where and how you caught it!
For your photos to be featured, make sure they follow our responsible handling and photography guidelines, which means fish held horizontally and not vertically by the gills, no blood, one hand under the belly and the other holding the tail, preferably water in the background etc). Stay safe, have fun, and keep sharing your awesome catches!
We’ve received plenty of questions from many keen fishers seeking clarity on the recent demersal fisheries changes.
A key part of Recfishwest’s role is to cut through uncertainty and help provide clear, accurate information on what these decisions mean for the people we represent.
Some of the most common questions we’re hearing include:
Can I still fish for demersals from the shore?
What’s Recfishwest’s view on the science behind the changes?
Will I receive a licence discount?
Did Recfishwest call for the 20-month West Coast closure?
We’ve worked to provide answers and clarify as best we can, sharing what we currently understand, bearing in mind that when it comes to the rules, DPIRD as the fisheries regulator set and interpret the fishing rules.
As always, we are keen to hear your concerns and comments and are here to help answer any more questions you may have – so please feel free to drop us a line.
This will be our last statewide fishing report for 2025, with the next report arriving to your inbox on Friday, 9 January.
From all of the Recfishwest team, we thank you for your support in what has been a massive year for fishing across Western Australia.
The Recfishwest office will also be closed from 25 December and will reopen on Monday, 5 January.
Stay safe, enjoy your festive break with your friends and family, and we hope you get amongst some good fish in the next few weeks. We’ll see you in 2026!
Make sure you download the Recfishwest app if you're thinking of wetting a line this festive season!
Tileyah Birch with a solid Kimberley barra!
Lighter winds have got locals back in the groove, but despite calmer weather offshore most crews opted to concentrate on Roebuck Bay, where they found tripletail around the moorings and bluebone on the broken ground inshore. Crews got on to Spanish mackerel off Barred Creek, while threadfin salmon were active in Roebuck Bay and Crab Creek. Barramundi were fishing well in both Crab and Dampier creeks. Mud crab catches were steady. The light to moderate westerly winds are sticking around over the coming days and there are some storms expected from Monday, but there should be relatively flat conditions on the water across both days this weekend.
Shore-Based
Entrance Point has held trevally, queenfish and bluebone, while Town Beach jetty has yielded queenfish and trevally. Decent queenfish have turned up at Gantheaume Point also. Willie Creek has held mangrove jack, while the Fitzroy River has had varied flows and levels have been changing rapidly. Despite this, a few barramundi have been landed, although road conditions mainly have limited fishing to Telegraph Pool and Langi Crossing.Big thanks to the crew from Tackle World Broome for their tips! Make sure you pay them a visit for the best gear and advice for your next fishing trip.
Another beauty of a tusky for @brody.sutton within Exmouth Gulf!
Improved conditions allowed crews to head out wide where good numbers of blue marlin were raised with several landed. Bottom fishers found goldband snapper in reasonable numbers. Red emperor were in the 40-60m depths and were kept company by Rankin cod, while closer in spangled emperor and coral trout were landed. Spanish mackerel were at the back of the reef and out from Tantabiddi. The lagoons at Tantabiddi have produced spangled emperor. The islands have been fairly quiet for bottom species, but Spanish mackerel, golden trevally, a few giant trevally and queenfish have been landed. In Exmouth Gulf, school mackerel and blue-lined emperor have been plentiful on the Shoals and coral trout have been prolific, but most have been barely sized. Squid fishers have been going well close in, while fly-fishers have tangled with spangled emperor, bluebone and permit. Early on Saturday might hold a decent window although the Gulf would be a more comfortable option. Thankfully Tuesday to Thursday next week is looking nice on the forecast for Christmas.
Exmouth Gulf has continued to fish well for whiting and a few trevally and queenfish have been picked up on metal slices when bait schools have been active. The marina has held no surprises, just the usual mix of small cod, bream, queenfish and trevally, although mangrove jack have been taken at times. The outside wall has continued to produce squid and the rocks at the industrial estate have been worth a crack as well. Mildura Wreck and Lighthouse Bay have offered mainly spangled emperor and bluebone, while spangos have been taken at Winderabandi and Tantabiddi.These great tips were courtesy of the friendly team at Tackle World Exmouth. Swing by their store for the best advice and gear ahead of your next trip!
Conditions have been rough offshore and pelagic sightings were scarce, but there is plenty of bait around which bodes well for the pelagic action in the coming weeks as water temperatures rise. The white crayfish run has been going gang busters and crews have had no problems getting their quota. Early across both mornings this weekend would be more comfortable out on the water before the wind spikes from around midday. Thankfully Wednesday and Thursday next week are looking lovely on the forecast for Christmas.
Tailor catches have been steady at Wittecarra where they have been boosted by soapy mulloway and bigger models to 11kg. The tailor action has slowed at the river mouth where young anglers have been spooled by a couple of unknown and unstoppable beasts. Good tailor have been taken from the cliffs along with pink snapper. Sizeable tailor have also been caught at Lucky Bay and Wagoe. The Murchison River has been firing this week. Yellowfin whiting have been in good numbers at the Sand Spit and in the ocean at Chinamans, while bream and mangrove jack have been plentiful at the jetties and at Red Rocks. RMG Scorpion hard-bodies have been working well on the jacks, while bream have preferred bait and soft plastics. Crabbing has been going well too, with blue swimmer crabs dominating catches.Shout out to Kalbarri Sports and Dive for their tips! Feel free to venture into the store and ask for advice if you're wetting a line around Kalbarri.
You don’t have to swim far offshore before you’re in cray land in Gero, with Ben Luff @northern_addicts gathering a delicious feed.
A couple of tuna were caught on the troll earlier this week during the better weather windows, with deeper diving lures working best when trolled at 4-5 knots. It took some time to entice hookups, but trolling along the contours worked best and some boats reported birds diving at bait schools. Most crews have once again been concentrating on crayfishing with the bulk of the action once again taking place south of town and down to Port Denison, but with some big swells and stronger southerly winds expected we strongly advise waiting until Wednesday when the weather starts to improve before attempting this. Until then, land-based fishing is your safest bet.
Tailor fishing has picked up with some solid fish over the 50cm mark coming through earlier this week. Both the first and second points at Greenough have once again been reliable and lures such as Halco Roosta Poppers or CiD Shiversticks have worked best. Soaking a bait here in the clearer patches also produced a couple of mulloway around one metre earlier this week. Due to the southerlies, the weed has been pretty annoying once again, but hopefully this will start to subside and clearer patches will open up. The Buller River was another spot that has performed well for tailor thanks to less weed.
Thanks to the team at Geraldton Sports Centre for their tips! They will happily provide you with great gear and solid advice for your next fishing trip.
Allan had a cracking session alongside Peter Fullarton earlier this week during nicer weather, with pinkies hot on the bite.
The main game continues to be the white lobster run, with catches still consistent albeit slowing slightly. For those who have been getting out, there’s certainly been no shortage of action. Inside the bay has been a mixed bag, with squid, skippy, herring, snook, flathead and King George whiting all on offer. These species are perfect fun on a well-matched ultra-light setup and a great way to fill an esky without burning too much fuel. It doesn’t take much of a move to find some quality fish either, with yellowtail kingfish and greenback tailor holding around the bay’s reef breaks. Pushing a little wider, schools of bonito and small tuna have been encountered. These fish have been extremely spooky, so rather than trolling and putting the school down, the most effective approach has been to sit upwind and cast into them using small stickbaits or metal lures. Adding to the excitement, the first confirmed sightings of mackerel have come through, a sure sign the warmer water species are starting to arrive. For those just looking for a reliable feed, the 20-metre line continues to deliver, with some fat sand whiting. Unfortunately the weather isn’t looking inviting for the boaties until Wedesday, but it is looking promising after that for Christmas.
The beaches are well and truly slipping into summer mode by widening out and firming up nicely for driving, although Lancelin has a long history of catching out the unwary. To avoid becoming part of the scenery, make sure your vehicle is in the correct gear, drop your tyre pressures, and carry basic recovery gear such as traction boards. With the holiday period in full swing, courtesy goes a long way. Obey beach road rules, slow down, and keep a safe distance from other vehicles especially when passing parked cars, as pets or kids can appear without warning. The weed situation has improved significantly, and with a bit of searching it’s possible to find clean patches for an easy bait soaking session. Tailor fishing has been best around the afternoon high tide, while the warmer water has brought in more tropical visitors, with guitarfish showing up as bycatch this past week. The larger snapper are fishing well now and early mornings have produced 2-3kg pink snapper within casting distance of the shore. As the sun gets higher, success has improved by sending drone baits a few hundred metres offshore.
Big thanks to Peter Fullarton for his tips on what's biting around Lancelin each week! If you want Peter to put you on to the fish directly, make sure you check out his Tailored Treks Tours page. Peter knows the best spots around Lancelin like the back of his hand.
Another solid South Coast trip for Gido this week, with plenty of stunning species such as this harlequin fish landed. You can watch Gido’s latest adventure here.
Nannygai have been red-hot in 40-60m offshore, with the hot bite time from 9.30-11am. Sizeable breaksea cod have been caught at Giant Rocks, while Mondrain Island has yielded yellowtail kingfish and big Samsonfish. Queen snapper to 90cm have been taken at Lion Island, while squid catches have been good in 16-18m at Cook Rocks. Squid, herring and snook have been active in Esperance Bay, while sand whiting have been plentiful at Rubbish Tips and in Wylie Bay. Sunday arvo through to Tuesday morning looks decent on the forecast.
Thomas River and Israelite Bay have fished well for mulloway, gummy sharks and bronze whalers, while Alexander Bay has held salmon and gummy sharks. Lots of salmon have been at Dunn Beach, while sand whiting, tarwhine and flathead have been biting at Stockyards. A big school of salmon has been cruising Fourth Beach, while Whale Beach has fished well for gummy sharks and mulloway. Decent sand whiting have been caught at Observation Point, while the Town Jetty has held lots of squid and herring. King George and sand whiting have been holed up in Bandy Creek Boat Harbour, while King George whiting and big flathead have been active on the town foreshore. Woody Lake has fished well for bream.
Hats off to the very knowledgeable team at Southern Sports & Tackle for their tips! These guys love their fishing as well, so make sure you swing by their store for the best gear and advice before wetting a line around Esperance.
Heads up to all South Coast and South-West fishers planning to fish over the coming week from from Cape Naturaliste to Bremer Bay.
This Hazardous Fishing Alert is part of our partnership with the Bureau of Meteorology to help notify fishers of dangerous forecasts. With a significant swell moving along southern half of the WA coastline during this time, it is important to put your safety first.
INFO:
Today will see significant wave heights begin increasing, with swell possible between 3-3.5m late on Saturday and early Sunday morning, with swell periods of 10-12 seconds.
Swell peaks possible again between 3.5-4m on Monday with longer swell periods of 14-16 seconds, before swell quickly decreases below 3m by Tuesday afternoon.
No fish is worth your life, so put your safety first and if anyone you know is thinking of going fishing in these areas during this time, let them know of this alert.
The strong run of sizeable King George whiting has continued with Gull Rock, Michaelmas Reef and Michaelmas Island fishing well. Frenchman Bay, Whaleworld and Mistaken Island have offered smaller KG’s and good numbers of squid, while Two Peoples Bay has held big sand whiting and squid as well. Tuna have been picked up by crews trolling at Bald Head, Vancouver Rock and Eclipse Island. Denmark’s Wilson Inlet has continued to produce pink snapper, while at Waychinicup yak fishers paddling out from the inlet picked up small breaksea cod and reasonable harlequin fish. Sunday morning looks to be the most accommodating for the boaties on the forecast.
Bream have been plentiful in the King, Kalgan, Pallinup and Frankland rivers along with Emu Point and in the town marina. Herring, skippy and a few squid have been taken at the marina and also at Frenchman Bay and Whaleword. Reports of tailor have come from Sandpatch, while salmon have been caught east of town at Cheynes, Bluff Creek and Fosters Beach with herring and decent skippy kicking around at these locations too. Waychinicup has produced King George whiting and skippy. Gull Rock has held herring, tarwhine and skippy. With a Hazardous Fishing Alert currently active until at least Tuesday, make sure you put your safety first and fish off the beach rather than the rocks. Cheers to the Trailblazers Albany crew for their fishing tips this week! Swing by their store if you're after some top gear and advice ahead of your next fishing trip. Remember, Trailblazers Albany have loan lifejackets available if you wish to fish off the rocks, but keeping the sand between your toes is always a safer option.
An easy double-up for Trudy Morehouse @squidqueen.wa, with plenty of these tasty critters doing the rounds over the patchy ground of weed.
It’s been quiet on the boating front, especially since the crays have moved out to deeper waters, with most crews after a feed of squid or King George whiting concentrating on Geographe Bay. In the Leschenault Estuary blue swimmer crab number have started to pick up, but a bit of work is required. Trolling for chopper tailor between pot runs remains worthwhile. A few Samsonfish have been on the offshore lumps and tuna schools have been reported, so it would be wise to start trolling deeper diving lures at 4-6 knots. Sunday morning’s forecast looks decent and Wednesday onwards is looking very promising.
Leschenault Estuary has been a hive of activity with yellowfin whiting widespread and in good sizes and numbers, rewarding fishers wading the flats casting vibes and surface lures. Scoopers have started to pick up blue swimmer crabs, mainly after dark, while school prawns have been taken up by those dab-netting at night. Decent chopper tailor have moved into the Collie River, which has held a few bream and mulloway ranging from soapies to school-sized. Fishers there have been targeting mulloway on 90mm Molix Glide baits. Reports of giant herring have come from the river too. Beaches north of town have been fishing well for solid tailor in the 40-45cm range with Myalup, Preston and Binningup going well. They were also offering a few solid mulloway and gummy sharks. Yellowfin whiting have been mixed in with sand whiting at Preston Beach. Beaches south of Bunbury such as Dalyellup have held more herring than tailor. There is still the odd crayfish about for those shore diving from Binningup and Stratham beaches, while at Busselton Jetty squid fishing has slowed but a few yellowtail kingfish have been taken at the structure’s deep end.
Big cheers to Whitey's Tackle & Camping for their top fishing tips as always! If you're in Australind or Bunbury and are keen to wet a line throughout our South-West make sure you ask their very friendly team who love their fishing for advice and stock up on gear at their store. If you're in Busselton, the 2 Oceans Tackle team are also incredibly helpful.
The Pemberton area has been producing good numbers of brown and rainbow trout with Big Brook Dam, Lefroy Brook and the Donnelly river among the better spots. A couple of rainbows have been picked up in the barely flowing Nanga Brook, while Drakesbrook Weir and Harvey Dam have produced a few rainbows. A few trout have been caught in Glen Mervyn Dam on trolled Hurricane Minnows. Harvey Dam and the Collie town have been some of the better redfin perch spots.
@hunter__hebb put in the hard yards recently on the flats and landed this cracking top water trophy yellowfin whiting earlier this week! These fish are everywhere at the moment over the sand and Hunter also battled plenty of decent tailor, so get out there and make the most of it if you haven’t already.
Boats
Crews targeting yellowtail kingfish this week got a surprise when they landed a couple of shark mackerel. The kingfish never turned up, but there were plenty of large pike. Straight out of town in 200m an experienced fisher got stuck into a school of 10kg-plus yellowfin tuna. King George whiting have been widespread along the 30-40m lines and sand whiting have been in close, along with squid off Seascapes, Melros and Falcon. Squid have also been in the estuary just off the Dawesville Cut. Crayfish have moved into deeper waters with the mid-20m depths at the back of the Five-Fathom Bank producing for both divers and pot droppers. In the estuary, tailor and herring have been going strong, but juvenile salmon and skippy have been harder to find. As for blue swimmer crabs, it’s been a case of prospecting to find a patch of them, but they usually have been full of meat. If you see fishers keeping undersize crabs or poaching, Recfishwest urges you to report it to FishWatch to help protect this popular fishery. Check out DPIRD’s FishWatch online reporting form here. The southern side of the Harvey Estuary has fished well for them around Park Ridge and the mouth of the Murray River has held some good ones. Sunday morning could be the go, but Tuesday to Thursday’s forecast looks much better for the boaties.
Tailor fishing has been going well at Tims Thicket and White Hills with some decent mulloway turning up as well. Yellowfin whiting have been mooching in the shallows of calmer beaches such as Falcon and Melros. Beaches north of town have been quieter, but San Remo has held a few chopper tailor in the evenings. The Dawesville Cut has continued to fish well for tailor, as did the Mandurah bridges. Herring have been at the Dawesville Cut and the ocean end has produced modest-sized pink snapper. The Cut’s jetties have offered squid on the incoming afternoon tides. Silver bream and soapy mulloway have been in the estuary marinas, while bream and soapy mulloway have been in the Murray River with giant herring turning up too. The Serpentine River held small soapy mulloway. Yellowfin whiting are still the main game in the Peel-Harvey Estuary. The tings have been widespread and good-sized, with most fishers spotting them feasting on whitebait and smashing top-water lures, vibes and shallow-diving minnows. Often all it takes is for a wind change to fire them up. Near the bottom of the tide has also produced, with the whiting hanging about as water drains from the flats. Whiting bycatch has included flounder and giant herring. Scoop netters have had to work hard for a feed of size crabs and it’s worth waiting a few weeks to let them moult.
Thinking of wetting a line around Mandurah? These great tips were courtesy of the super friendly and helpful team at Tackle World Miami so make sure you swing by their store for the best tips and gear before your next fishing trip!
Squid fishing has been going well with Mangles Bay, Woodman Point, inshore of Garden Island and Parmelia Bank all fishing well with sand whiting and King George whiting also in these locations. King George whiting have been taken in 30m plus depths heading towards Rottnest, while tuna schools have been scarce and were difficult to tempt with lures. Thankfully some big Samsonfish have been taking trolled lures meant for them. Exposed reefs have fished well for solid tailor and they have also been in good numbers in Cockburn Sound when birds have been working around the whitebait school bust-ups. Crabbing has been steady at best, while divers have been getting heaps of crayfish. Those dropping pots have had good and bad days and it pays to keep moving your pots out deeper or slightly further north. Sunday morning looks best over the weekend, but Tuesday through to Thursday is looking peachy on the forecast.
The gutters from Secret Harbour down through Golden Bay and on to Mandurah have been fishing very well for pink snapper, decent tailor and mulloway up to 1.3m, while Warnbro, Long Point and Port Kennedy have held chopper tailor in good numbers and a few skippy. The warmer weather has fired up yellowfin whiting and flatfish with the Pond at Safety Bay, Penguin Island, grain terminal beach and Long Point holding good numbers. Nice sand whiting have been mixed in as well. The local jetties have offered the odd squid, herring and sand whiting. Point Peron has fished reasonably well for squid also.
These great fishing tips were provided by the friendly team at Compleat Angler & Camping World in Rockingham, so make sure you chat to their experienced crew in store and stock up before heading out!
The ladies outfished the gents this week in Perth! @brittazubrowski landed this stonker King George whiting at Rottnest over the weekend, while Isabella Tan @castawaybell had a successful session targeting flounder in the Swan River.
The FADs are kicking off very nicely for catches. Yellowtail kingfish and tuna have been taken, while spearfishers have picked up a couple of dolphinfish and wahoo. Tuna have also been landed off Rottnest by those trolling lures at 4-6 knots. Sand whiting have been in reasonable numbers off Fremantle and squid have been holding much deeper, often in 18-20m on the whiting grounds. The white crayfish run has been going well with the best catches starting from 20m. King George whiting catches have been slow, although Mindarie, Rottnest, the Three-Mile Reef and Windmills have produced a few. Tailor have been caught at Mewstones and Stragglers. Blue swimmer crabs have been picked up in the Swan River’s deeper pockets including Mosman Bay and Blackwall Reach. Trolling for chopper tailor has been good in the river’s deeper sections off Point Walter, Applecross and out from Freshwater Bay. The next few days are looking windy with the mornings your best bet, although both Wednesday and Thursday are looking glorious on the forecast for Christmas.
Most action has centred on the Swan River with flathead prolific in the lower and middle reaches. Claremont, Freshwater Bay, East Fremantle, Point Walter, Bicton, Rocky Bay, Alfred Cove and Nedlands have been some of the hotspots. Flounder have been mixed in with numbers particularly strong at East Fremantle and Point Walter. The drop-offs from the Narrows downstream have been holding good tailor. Giant herring were widespread, but most fish have been around the 30cm mark. Juvenile Samsonfish of similar size have been landed at the Bicton Baths. A mulloway nudging a metre was caught and released at the Causeway this week. Bream had been in reasonable numbers around the Ashfield flats, but they appear to have moved further up towards Bassendean and Guildford with the odd one still downriver at East Perth. The Canning River has continued to be quiet, but at times the Shelley area has produced small giant herring and just-size bream, tarwhine and yellowtail grunter. On the ocean front, herring have been caught at the northern marinas, while a few have been at North Mole keeping company with small tailor and snook. One or two small pink snapper have been caught at North Mole after dark. Tailor have been active at Quinns and Alkimos, while in reefy areas around Cottesloe they were spotted feasting on whitebait and taking lures such as CiD Sprats and Halco Twistys on overcast days. They have shut down on calm mornings, but at those times herring, skippy, sand whiting and flathead have turned up for bait fishers.
A big thanks to Compleat Angler Nedlands for their great metro tips! These guys are all avid fishers, know the best spots for every particular species and have provided great support to Recfishwest and metro fishers for many years. Make sure you ask their super friendly team for advice at their store just off Stirling Highway and stock up before wetting a line off the land or boat!
Scotty from Hillarys Boat & Tackle has made it into Alintas Top 10 best Christmas Light’s in Perth for another year! If you want to help Scott and his family take out the top prize, vote for 10 Topeka Place, Wanneroo on the link below!
Vote for Scott’s house here!
Our Fishing Report is compiled by West Australian writer and keen angler William Bennett, who contacts tackle stores directly around WA - love your work William!
Recfishwest’s fishing report contributors: Jarrad Lawford (editor and images), Sam Bock, Sedin Hasanovic, Sam Russell, Levi De Boni and Eligh Quigley.
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This Fishing Report was submitted on 12/19/2025 2:46:35 AM by Seamus and last updated on 12/24/2025 11:03:56 PM.
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