Townsville recreational anglers have just gained better odds on Ross River after a Townsville City Council electrofishing operation relocated 143 barramundi — many of them over a metre — from the Ross River Dam's spillway base back into legal fishing water downstream.
The operation wrapped up on 10 April 2026 and produced a total of 144 fish: 143 barra and one tilapia. Council reported "a significant number of fish over a metre long" and confirmed that more than 100 of the captured fish were transported safely downstream for re-release into Stage 1 access water.
Recent rainfall had swept barramundi into the spillway base, where they became trapped and unreachable. Council framed the relocation as a dual-purpose exercise — protect the fish from being stranded, and remove the temptation that had been drawing anglers into a prohibited zone.
Mayor Nick Dametto placed the work in recreational terms. "This work supports recreational fishing on the Ross River, while removing fish from directly below the spillway where they were trapped after the recent rainfall events," he said.
The safety angle has sharpened through the season. Councillor Kristian Price warned about the deceptive appearance of the spillway. "The spillway might look calm one moment, but in a very short time it can become extremely dangerous, particularly during the wet season," he said, adding that compliance staff had been subjected to abuse for enforcing the rules. "No one deserves abuse for trying to keep people safe, this also goes for those recreationally fishing in the Ross River Dam."
For anglers, the takeaway is direct. A sizeable school of metre-plus barra has effectively been moved from a no-go zone into water they are allowed to fish. Council has also tied future Stage 2 access — which would open additional fishing and boating opportunities on the dam — to community behaviour under the current Stage 1 rules, meaning continued breaches at the spillway could delay what many locals want to see opened up.
Two health reminders accompany the fishing news. Eating fish from the Ross River Dam is not recommended while blue-green algae remains present, and the spillway base itself continues to be off-limits regardless of how the water looks. For the angler fishing downstream under the current rules, though, the Ross River just got deeper — and considerably more interesting.