Diver whiting (winter whiting)

Diver whiting size and bag limit in QLD

Trumpeter (winter) whiting: no size limit, 50 per person.

Checked 8 Oct 2026 against the Queensland Government pages: size and possession limits and closed seasons.

Limits are possession limits: they count everything you hold, including any at home in the freezer. In yellow (conservation park) zones: max 2 lines and 2 hooks in total per angler. Green zones: no fishing. All QLD fishing rules

When to catch diver whiting in South East Queensland

• P peak season
• S in season
• – off season
• C closed season for at least part of the month

Time of day: Daytime drifting.

Weather: not fussy about wind; rain makes little difference.

Seasons partly come from Coastwatch report mentions, not catch numbers.

Diver whiting by area

Not in our guide for Noosa, Sunshine Coast, Moreton Island, Straddie & Jumpinpin, Gold Coast, Offshore Sunshine Coast, Offshore Moreton and Offshore Gold Coast.

Around Scarborough and the Redcliffe Peninsula

Our local Redcliffe Peninsula notes come from local fishing columns and reports, and for diver whiting they differ from the South East Queensland picture. Around Scarborough the best months are June, July and August, with April, May and September also worth a try.

Drifting by boat: the Cockle Banks out from Scarborough (exact position not confirmed), north of the Scarborough leads, Deception Bay, Bramble Bay and directly in front of the peninsula, usually in 3–4.5 m.

When: Daytime boat drifting; non-stop action once you find them.

Where to catch diver whiting in SEQ

Moreton Bay only, drifting by boat in 3-5 m: the Cockle Banks off Scarborough and Bribie, Deception and Bramble bays, in front of the Redcliffe Peninsula, and in the southern bay off the Sandhills (Moreton Island) and in the Small Boat Passage. Present all year in the southern bay.

Diver whiting is mostly a boat fishery in South East Queensland.

Catch Signal forecast areas that rate diver whiting: Caloundra & northern Pumicestone Passage, Bribie Island & southern Pumicestone Passage, Redcliffe Peninsula & Deception Bay, Bramble Bay, Pine River & Sandgate, Central bay & Moreton Island west, Wynnum, Manly & Wellington Point, Cleveland, Peel & Straddie west, Victoria Point, Redland Bay & bay islands.

Spots to try for diver whiting

Picked because the water each spot reaches suits diver whiting (our habitat match), not from catch reports. Each spot links to its place on the area page; tide times are for the place our forecast reads for that spot.

How to catch diver whiting: best baits, lures and rig

Baits

• Bloodworms
• Squid strips
• Peeled prawn
• Yabbies

Lures

• 2 inch Gulp Sandworm (bloody)

Diver whiting rig

Double-dropper paternoster, size 4-6 long-shank hooks with red beads or tube, 6 lb mono, sinker on the bottom.

Good to know about diver whiting

More abundant on the western side of the bay in winter. School mackerel and sand crabs share the grounds.

Open in the forecast

See diver whiting in the Catch Signal app: seasons for the area you fish, closed-season warnings and the best days this week.