Ian Fisher was about 13 or 14 when he caught his last eel tailed catfish in the Edward River at Deniliquin.
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Up until that point, they were a regular catch for the keen angler who spent every day on the banks of the Edward honing his fishing skills and reeling in dinner for himself and his family.
It soon became clear that catfish had become extinct in local waters.
For all the times Mr Fisher has spent on the river since - and those who know him know those hours would be countless - he has not seen one since.
But now, at the age of 59, the promise of a self sustaining catfish colony in Deniliquin and district is again a reality.
A project 15 years in the making - championed by Mr Fisher and other project partners - saw 250 eel tailed catfish released into the Edward River at Willoughby’s Beach on Wednesday.
It is significant locally because the fish has not naturally existed in the system for more than a generation.
But is also believed to be the first community release of catfish into a river system anywhere in NSW.
At least 100 people were on hand to witness the historic moment.
Project partners and community members took turns transporting net loads of the catfish from buckets to the beach’s edge and introduced them to their new habitat.
Local indigenous representative Anthony Jones was given the honour of releasing the first few fish to the water, and the gathered crowd applauded as the catfish sunk beneath the water and started to explore new depths.
Edward River Council Mayor Peta Betts, representatives from project partners and sponsors, Deniliquin High School students and interested bystanders also took their turn.
Mr Fisher watched on from a canoe in the centre of the river, but eventually got his turn to wield a net full of catfish down to the water.
“It is not about me, but it was very special,” he said.
“It brought back memories of my childhood, and I hope they go alright, thrive and breed, and that one day young people can catch them like I once did.
“I have an emotional attachment to the river here in Deni. I completely understand the attachment indigenous people have to country, because the Edward River is a part of me and I am a part of it.
“It started when I was about eight, or even earlier. I would walk back to our home in Davidson St from Deni North School through the north gully.
“Along there I had an old World War II tin I used as a shrimp tin.
“I’d use the shrimp to bait my rod, and I’d be there from about 3.30pm to 5pm before going home to mum.
“I’d try and get enough shrimp so that I had enough left for a sandwich for dinner, and I would catch catfish around the willows.
“There was even a platypus there that eventually would take shrimp out of my hand, until the use of drum nets made them extinct locally too.”
Mr Fisher said cutting up drum nets on his way home from school was the start of his “conservationist side”, and as an adult it is those childhood memories that prompted him to join committees with a focus on river health.
It was about the same time Mr Fisher flagged with his fellow committee members a project to see catfish returned to the river.
Little did he know how long it would take, and how much effort would be required.
He said the first challenge was convincing people, particularly the authorities, that catfish were once native to the river system.
Then came the research, negotiations and eventually approval.
The last hurdle was funding, which is where the Edward Kolety Fishing Challenge - introduced to the Deniliquin calendar of events this year - came in.
Challenge committee member Andrew Jefferies said projects like this are the exact reason the event was started.
“So many had worked so hard to get the project as far as they did, and they just needed $10,000 or $15,000 to make it happen,” Mr Jefferies said.
“The challenge was set up with the sole purpose of getting this done, as well as further releases of golden perch and Murray cod.
“So if you wonder how you can get involved in such a great project, the first thing you can do is to come to our next fishing challenge.
“We need to make releases like this for a number of years in a row to make this work, so we need your support and we need corporate sponsorship.
“Every dollar of profit from our event goes back into the river.”
Deniliquin-based ecologist Dr John Conallin said the fish released this week are about three years old, and measure about 30cm, meaning they could start breeding as early as this summer.
He said the significance of their reintroduction to the Edward cannot be underestimated.
“There are some kids here today who may never have seen one of these catfish in their lifetime,” he said at the release.
“Catfish once formed an important part of this river, and in the diets of the people who lived along it.
“They have been lost to at least an entire generation because they have been missing for so long.
“Getting to this point has not been a simple process. It has been a long one, but a worthwhile one.
“And we could not have done it without the support we’ve received in the past 15 years.”
The Catfish release project is a joint initiative of the Recreational Fishing Trust, Deniliquin Kolety Lagoons Landcare Group, Joint Indigenous Group, NSW DPI Fisheries, Murray Local Land Services, Edward Wakool Anglers Association and the Edward Kolety Fishing Challenge.
“There were times we thought it would never happen, and some of us gave up for a time before trying again.
“The catfish we’ve released have come from Rick at Narrabri Fisheries, and we intend this to be an ongoing project.
“It is an interesting species in that it has skin rather than scales like those we call fin fish.
“This means they should never be handled without wet hands or a went cloth.
“They live up to eight years, and they are a nesting species. The male will guard the nest.”
While this is the first time eel tailed catfish have been released into the natural waterways of the Edward Wakool system, Dr Conallin said the same project partners have previously introduced catfish to the Deniliquin lagoons system and they are thriving.
A catfish restocking program is also underway in the Finley Lake, also coordinated by the same project partners.
The Edward River at Deniliquin was not the only part of the system to benefit from this week’s release project.
In addition to the 250 released at Willoughby’s Beach, a “few hundred” more have been released at other locations determined in consultation with relevant authorities.
This includes Pollack Swamp and Swan Lagoon in the Koondrook Perricoota Forest, Eagle Creek at Barham and Murrabit Creek at Wakool.
Dr Conallin said while the ultimate aim is for the catfish to get back to numbers where they can be fished recreationally, for now it is illegal to remove them from the river.
If anyone accidentally snags one, they are to contact the Deniliquin Kolety Lagoons Landcare Group on 0438 719 628 as soon as possible.
Senior journalist