Burrowing Murray Cod?

[yellow door 1]

What the go with Cod burrowing into dried up river beds

I just heard a story from a bloke from Dubbo and he reckoned they can live under the mud for a while.

Has anyone got any more info about this

[stella fella]

I don't know about cod, but I've seen silver perch appear in dams near where I live after being dry for over a year.

[Lymphocyte]

Originally Posted by yellow door 1

he reckoned they can live under the mud for a while.

I'm sure they can live 'for a while', but that while may only equate to a few hours. Don't get me wrong, cod are incredibly tough fish and can survive in conditions that many other fish may not. But I don't think any long-term survival in dry creek beds is possible. Maybe he found some cod struggling to survive in a recently dried up bed and interpreted that as being normal.

I know cod can make little mud nests underwater to deposit there eggs during spawning season, particularly if there's a lack of structure.

[yellow door 1]

Originally Posted by Lymphocyte

I'm sure they can live 'for a while', but that while may only equate to a few hours. Don't get me wrong, cod are incredibly tough fish and can survive in conditions that many other fish may not. But I don't think any long-term survival in dry creek beds is possible. Maybe he found some cod struggling to survive in a recently dried up bed and interpreted that as being normal.

I know cod can make little mud nests underwater to deposit there eggs during spawning season, particularly if there's a lack of structure.

This bloke I was speaking to said a 30km stretch of river that had been dry for years suddenly sprung to life within hours of the flood waters firsts trickling down the centre.

My response was - "ahhh they come down with the water"

He said "Nah they burrow down through the river bed and live in artesian bore water"

I know lots of other fish, bugs and amphibians do it, but I've never heard of big units like cod doing it.

But I watched this guys face closely for signs that he was "taking the piss" - I didnt see any - and I believe that he believed he was telling the truth.

My google search on the issue found some reference to cod burrowing in dried up billabongs but it didnt say what they were up to and how long they survive

[yellow door 1]

Originally Posted by stella fella

I don't know about cod, but I've seen silver perch appear in dams near where I live after being dry for over a year.

The explanation I got was somewhere between underground rivers and zombie cod.

But everything else this guy said sounded legit

[Paz]

Carp can live in dried up creek/dam beds apparently

[yellow door 1]

Originally Posted by Paz

Carp can live in dried up creek/dam beds apparently

Yeah - I've seen doco's on creatures that lie dormant in dried up river beds for 9 months. Then they come back to life when the rains start falling. Its not usually big stuff like cod

But I've heard stories like the one "stella fella" told - And seen cod caught in rivers that were dry, only weeks before.

This Dubbo local was a character - about 45 years of age - and there's every chance he was taking the piss. But there was something about the details of the stories he was telling, that made me think he wasnt trying to pull the wool over my eyes.

What he was saying may not have been true - but he believed it and I dont know any better

I know enough to be skeptical - but not enough to not raise the question

[stella fella]

one expaination I've heard is that some fish will actually burrow down in the mud and make a nest/bubble/cave full of water, just large enough to fit in, and then they just shut down completely. Carp must be able to do it, because the dam on our property is filled from a bore during summer, and drained for the rest of the year, and within a day or so of filling it there are already foot long carp swimming around, and we sure as hell didn't put them there.

[walloper]

This is CSI BM AUSTRALIA.

I'm not takin the piss either, i've never heard of cod being able to burrow in to the mud and turn off!

It's bloody possible come to think of it though

Your a details man YD, if the dude seemed to be on the level and his face was straight and not that of a man who's told lies for years, then there could be more to this one.

[yellow door 1]

Originally Posted by stella fella

one expaination I've heard is that some fish will actually burrow down in the mud and make a nest/bubble/cave full of water, just large enough to fit in, and then they just shut down completely. Carp must be able to do it, because the dam on our property is filled from a bore during summer, and drained for the rest of the year, and within a day or so of filling it there are already foot long carp swimming around, and we sure as hell didn't put them there.

That is flat out freakish - If you had told me that yesterday before 6:23pm - I would have dismissed it as shenanigans

My experience with the water table is limited to digging back yard ponds.

My most ambitious project was on a slight slope - and I had alot of trouble getting the concrete to set at one end.

Each morning I would go out to check progress and part of the wall would be washed away. Each morning the hole was smaller and the concrete eventually set.

So as I understand it - the water flows through the ground but its more like water seeping through sand - than the underground rivers found on other continents.

[Rusty Hooks]

sounds like a fair question but i've never heard of it. I've seen alot of fish kills in books,magazines and on tv which make me think it isn't possible. I'm sure some of them are from pollutants running off farm padocks and the like but others would have to be from low water levels (i think anyway).

[yellow door 1]

Originally Posted by walloper

This is CSI BM AUSTRALIA.

I'm not takin the piss either, i've never heard of cod being able to burrow in to the mud and turn off!

It's bloody possible come to think of it though

Your a details man YD, if the dude seemed to be on the level and his face was straight and not that of a man who's told lies for years, then there could be more to this one.

The detail that got me - was him lamenting the digging of artesian bores. He mentioned that the more water we suck out of the ground - The less chance those particular buried cod had.

But I've also watched doco's on African rivers that are dry most of the time. The camera follows the first rain drop - through to the raging torrents that follow.

Fish are present, as soon as the river bed gets wet - But the footage shows those fish swimming along with the current and coming from a more permanent water source.

[stella fella]

Another interesting thing you might like to think about is the creek that runs by our property, which all of a sudden disappears between rocks and gravel, seeps underground and then bubbles up to the surface a few hundred metres away. It only happens when there is very little flow though. Another interesting little creature you might want to google is the arctic woolly bear caterpillar

[yellow door 1]

Originally Posted by stella fella

Another interesting thing you might like to think about is the creek that runs by our property, which all of a sudden disappears between rocks and gravel, seeps underground and then bubbles up to the surface a few hundred metres away. It only happens when there is very little flow though. Another interesting little creature you might want to google is the arctic woolly bear caterpillar

Had a look - He's one tough mutha - I would have reached for the "ugg boots" at minus 20

I never trust scientists to know everything - they 'know' what they could find in an area - if you tell them you found something that shouldnt be there - they will tell everyone you're lying, until they can find it and write an article about it

[macca33]

City folk - they'll believe anything....LOL