Silver Cobbler
FreshwaterSilver cobbler are the freshwater catfish of Lake Argyle and the Ord River in WA's East Kimberley — the bread-and-butter target between barramundi follows, not a Perth or estuary fish. A different species entirely from the south-west's saltwater estuary cobbler. Strong, clean-fighting, and one of the better-eating freshwater fish in northern Australia.
Overview
Silver cobbler are a large freshwater catfish endemic to northern Australia, with Lake Argyle holding the WA stronghold. They're a different species (Neoarius midgleyi) from the south-west's saltwater estuary cobbler (Cnidoglanis macrocephalus) and shouldn't be confused with it. At Argyle they're abundant, feed throughout the day, and provide the steady action that fills the time between barramundi follows. Most fish landed are 2–6kg but the lake produces fish well above 20kg if you're targeting them with bigger baits in deeper water. Despite the catfish label, the flesh is firm, white, and very clean — it's a genuine table fish, not a by-catch.
Identification
Silver catfish, forktail catfish, Midgley's catfish, cobbler (Ord and Argyle usage)
A large silvery-grey forktail catfish with a deeply forked tail, four pairs of barbels around a wide mouth, and a sharp serrated spine at the front of the dorsal and each pectoral fin. The confusion that matters is with the south-west's estuary cobbler, which shares the name and is a completely different animal: that fish is an eel-tailed catfish with a long tapering tail fused to the anal fin, mottled brown, and lives in saltwater estuaries. Silver cobbler share the Ord with other forktail catfish species, which run smaller and darker. Anglers up there just say cobbler and mean this fish.
How to Catch
Fresh fish strip, prawn, chicken pieces, beef heart, bardi grubs
Soft plastic paddle-tails worked slow on the bottom, blades, small vibes
Running sinker rig with 20–30lb mono mainline, 30–40lb leader, and a 4/0–6/0 wide-gape hook. Use enough sinker to hold bottom in current. A short trace is fine — silver cobbler don't have shearing teeth, but they have rough mouths and pectoral spines that can chew through light leader.
Anchor or drift over deeper holes, channel edges, and timber-strewn flats and fish baits hard on the bottom. Berley with crushed prawn or fish offcuts to draw fish into the area. Bites are usually a steady weight rather than a sharp tap — let them turn before striking. Watch the pectoral and dorsal spines when unhooking; they're sharp and they sting.
Silver cobbler bite year-round in Lake Argyle but are most reliable in the cooler dry-season months from May to September. They feed throughout the day and night, with low-light periods producing the larger fish. Tide doesn't apply — the lake is freshwater — but barometric drops before storms tend to fire them up.
Up to 1.4m and 40kg, commonly 2–6kg
Year-round
Size & Growth
Commonly 2–6kg, which is the size that keeps a rod bent between barramundi follows. A 10kg fish is a good one and Lake Argyle produces fish past 20kg for anglers who commit to bigger baits in deeper water, with the headline size around 1.4m and 40kg. They are slow-growing and long-lived once mature. Like other forktail catfish they are mouthbrooders — the males carry the eggs and then the young in the mouth through the season, which is a genuinely strange thing to think about while unhooking one.
Diet & Habitat
Omnivorous scavengers taking bony bream, prawns, mussels, insect larvae, plant matter and carrion off the bottom, located by barbel and smell rather than sight — which is why berley works so well on them. They hold in deeper holes, along channel edges and over timber-strewn flats, feeding day and night with the larger fish more active at low light. The WA stronghold is Lake Argyle in the East Kimberley, with Lake Kununurra and the Ord River system below it also holding good numbers, and scattered populations in other Kimberley river systems.
WA Size & Bag Limits
| Minimum size | No minimum size |
|---|---|
| Bag limit | 4 (combined freshwater bag) |
| Counts toward | Counts within the statewide freshwater finfish mixed daily bag of 4. A south-west freshwater angling licence is not required in the Lake Argyle / Ord region — that licence covers freshwater angling south of Greenough (29°S). |
Lake Argyle / Ord region freshwater rules apply. Silver cobbler (Neoarius midgleyi) are a freshwater catfish (Families Plotosidae and Ariidae) and count within the statewide freshwater finfish mixed daily bag of 4, with no minimum legal size. A south-west freshwater angling licence is not required in the Lake Argyle / Ord region — that licence covers freshwater angling south of Greenough (29°S). Barramundi taken in the same waters carry their own slot and bag limits.
Eating Quality
Excellent — and it surprises people who expect a catfish to be muddy. Firm, white, mild-flavoured fillets with no mud taint at all when the fish are taken from the open lake rather than a stagnant backwater. Skin it rather than scaling it, then pan-fry, grill or batter; the flesh is thick enough to cut into cubes for a curry and it holds together properly. There are no small bones to speak of once filleted. Bleed and ice it like any other fish. Handle it carefully on the way to the fillet table — the pectoral and dorsal spines are venomous and the sting is memorable, so pin the fish with a wet towel and work with long-nose pliers. Fillets freeze well vacuum-sealed for a couple of months, which is useful given how many you can catch in a session.
Perth Tips
Mind the spines — silver cobbler have a venomous pectoral and dorsal spine that delivers a painful sting, so support the fish from underneath with a wet towel and unhook with long-nose pliers. Lake Argyle Cruises and a few local operators run dedicated cobbler sessions if you want the local knowledge. Bigger baits cull the smaller fish; whole prawns or fillet halves will lift the average size.