Restocked rainbows add colour to lake

Lake Tutira must have seemed like trout heaven for Ray Rigby and Jeff Delugar as they made their latest catches, just as another 2250 were being added to the stock in the unique fishing spot north of Napier on Friday.

The two Napier fishing mates had each landed a rainbow jack over 1.5kg. Mr Rigby landed another tagged specimen in the afternoon, enabling him to go into the draw for a free licence for next season if he returns the tag.

They weren't the biggest by recent standards. Mr Rigby late last month managed a rainbow tipping the scales at 5.5kg.

According to Fish and Game regional manager Peter McIntosh, such a fish would have evaded the hook for four-to-five years, but was one of several of more than 4kg caught in recent weeks.

Of the 1-year-old trout released into the runoff-fed lake yesterday were 500 tagged specimens.

The rest were fin-clipped.

Returning of the tags, encouraged by the lure of a possible free licence, helps Fish and Game monitor the stock in the lake, where little or no breeding takes place because of the lack of running water.

More trout will be introduced to the lake in the spring, part of about 5000 introduced each year.