# Bullrout ???



## keza (Mar 6, 2007)

Hi All,

i took the kids out fishing last night at watsons bay, we caught a small snapper, a couple of tailor (about 33cm in size) and a fish i think was a bullrout.
I didn't know what this was but someone else that was with us said it was a good eating fish so we kept it.
It was dark when we left but i thought i would fillet the fish qiuckly before we left.
One of the dorsal spines on the mystery fish went right up under my fingernail. ouch
This was extremely painful and went from bad to worse with the pain going right through my had and all the way up my arm.
We headed back to the car and i thought i would sort the hand out at home but when we got to the car, the friend i was with locked his keys in the car (this is going very well).
Anyway the NRMA took an hour so we feed the kids with fish and chips while we waited and i did a personal study of the effects of pain on myself while we waited.
After an hour or so it started to subside and today the swelling has gone down and it is just a sore finger.

SO WHAT WAS IT 
unfortunately i had no camera with me so no pictures.
it was around 30cm long and looked very similar to a bullrout: 
http://www.scu.edu.au/schools/ncm/staff ... llrout.htm
except that it was more red in colour and the pictures i have seen of bullrout are more brown.
Any thoughts on this (except for wear gloves).
and is it good to eat ?
the flesh is white and looks good.

thanks 
Kerry


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## Chopper (Sep 2, 2006)

If its Red in colour It could be what we have here in the West and that is a Red Rock Cod ..They look very similar to the pic in your post ..Very good eating ...

Chopper


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## justcrusin (Oct 1, 2006)

Red rock cod it is mate, glad it was you that got stuck and not me, ouch they hurt. Get some fish grips and gloves.

A lot of people call them a poor mans lobster because of that white flesh pretty good to eat, some people thing there a bit soapy, but i like them.

Cheers dave


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## Red Herring (Dec 18, 2006)

Yep, would also agree on the red rock cod call. Have caught several over the years growing up in Sydney and can recommend them as a fish to eat. Problem is when you cut off the head there really ainÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t much left to eat. They have white flesh after cooking which is firmly textured and the flavour is fairly good. Fortunately, I've never been spiked by one. However I have been spiked by a bullrout, which over the years I don't recall seeing any greater than 5cm in length. We used to come across them from time to time netting for prawns in Tuggerah Lakes. Anyhow, once was enough and have steered clear of them ever since.

Cheers
RH


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## keza (Mar 6, 2007)

justcrusin32 said:


> Red rock cod it is mate, glad it was you that got stuck and not me, ouch they hurt. Get some fish grips and gloves.
> 
> A lot of people call them a poor mans lobster because of that white flesh pretty good to eat, some people thing there a bit soapy, but i like them.
> 
> Cheers dave


thanks guys, that sounds right to me.
Is it possible that a red rock cod can pack a punch like that?
I have been spiked by a eel tail catfish but i don't remember it being this bad.
Maybe i'm just getting soft.

thanks
Kerry
ps. i'll eat the bastard tonight


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## Peril (Sep 5, 2005)

keza said:


> Is it possible that a red rock cod can pack a punch like that?
> I have been spiked by a eel tail catfish but i don't remember it being this bad.
> Maybe i'm just getting soft.


You're not getting soft: http://www.amonline.net.au/fishes/stude ... rpaena.htm


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## paffoh (Aug 24, 2006)

Yummy, just caught about 7 this weekend ( Red Rock Cod )...

People call them 3 day fish as you wont go fishing again for 3 days if you get spiked, bloody yummy fish though guys with huge white fillets ( Rock Cod that is ).

Hope you feel better soon mate.


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## troppo (Feb 1, 2006)

We get bullrout in our rivers but mainly rocky areas where fresh water is and where people will be wading. Some places have warning signs along with watch out for crocs and jelly fish. Never heard of anyone eating these ones. Probably because they were in too much pain to think of doing anything with the fish beside getting away from it or throwing it on the road and running over it.

The local bullrout is different to the red rock cod in that the suborbital stay of the aforementioned species is a raised row of spines. [Actually I don't know what I am talking about but that page which Peril gave the link to had something like that in there and it sounded good.  Wonder if I can learn some big words like that and impress my fellow workers. . . Nay, probably not!]


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## keza (Mar 6, 2007)

i was just looking at the same page and my son was saying what is a 'suborbital stay' so when i read your post i was impressed (briefly).
We should have a prize for the first person to use it in a sentence at forster :lol:

Kerry


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## troppo (Feb 1, 2006)

keza said:


> We should have a prize for the first person to use it in a sentence at forster :lol:
> Kerry


 :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

That's good!


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## WayneD (Jul 11, 2006)

My old man once stepped on a bullrout at Seaforth. We were dragnetting for prawns after a week of rain. He spent three days in hospital and his ankle swelled up liked a blimp. You should be thankful that it wasn't one.


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## keza (Mar 6, 2007)

final word

it was definitely a red rock cod.
red rock cod are related to the scorpion fish so the spines are nasty.

they taste delicious !

kerry


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## RedPhoenix (Jun 13, 2006)

Unfortunately, due to the change in ownership of this web site and the lack of response by the owners to my requests to remove my email address from all administrative-level notifications and functionality, I have decided to remove my posts on AKFF. Thank you for the great times, the fantastic learning experiences and the many many fish. If you are desperate for the old content of this particular post, it is available below base64 encoded and bzip2 compressed.

Red.

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## keza (Mar 6, 2007)

redphoenix said:


> Slightly blurry picture of a couple of red rock cod:
> 
> Red.


that's the bastard that did it :evil:


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## Chopper (Sep 2, 2006)

Ours in the West are a lot Reder ...Caught one a couple of weeks ago but didnt worry about a pic ...Typical :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: ..Next time ......


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