10/09/2026
CHASING RAINBOWS
Ever since he was a boy exploring creeks in Pine Rivers just north of Brisbane, Steve Baines has been hooked on fish - particularly Australian native fish.
He distinctly remembers the first fish he caught when he was about 8 or 9 years old.
One was a Purple-spotted Gudgeon (listed as endangered in SE Australia) caught by rolling a car tyre into a dam, letting it settle and then hauling it out rapidly to find whatever fish had been trapped inside.
But it was another catch that really made an impact - a dazzling Rainbow-hued fish that he couldn’t identify.
“When I caught my first Rainbow Fish in that same dam … I thought I was in heaven. The beautiful, beautiful colours …,” he says.
Finding the Rainbow Fish sparked an enduring passion for fish that has become Steve’s life’s work.
In the pre-Internet era, with no mention of the fish in the family’s American encyclopedia, it was years before he found out it was a Rainbow Fish.
The little beauty has become the inspiration for his popular Rodney Rainbowfish series of children’s books (available at PPNN) and work as a native fish expert, author, public speaker and much more.
Steve’s colourful presentations at schools, environmental centres and public events highlight the need to care for freshwater environments.
Rainbow Fish are now less common than they used to be in SE Qld and are recognised as important indicators of creek health.
“The creeks and the dams that I used to catch fish in are now housing development.
“So those creeks and dams have been filled in, which is very sad.”
Steve is also an aquarium designer, show judge and qualified reptile handler who has owned and managed aquarium shops and taught aquarium staff in Brisbane and Pine Rivers.
He has worked professionally creating displays for aquariums and environmental centres, building enclosures for snakes and reptiles and looking after eco-centre reptiles, turtles and fish.
His handcrafted rock work, waterfalls and other aquatic landscapes - for fish, frogs and reptiles - feature in aquariums and other centres from the Daintree to Melbourne.
His displays can be seen at Griffith University’s Toohey Forest Environmental Education Centre in Brisbane, Tamborine Rainforest Skywalk, SEA LIFE Melbourne Aquarium, Kumbartcho Sanctuary and Nursery, Daintree Discovery Centre and in Lane Cove National Park.
He is president of QFAS (Queensland Federation of Aquarium Societies), which includes ANGFA (Australia and New Guinea Fishes Association) which focuses on conservation and preservation of native fish.
Dressed in his colourful Rainbow Fish suit, he regularly does presentations at kindergartens, schools, universities and for councils and community events such as this year’s National Tree Day at PPNN (Jul 26).
“So it’s covered quite a few areas of my life: fish," Steve says.
“It's been a wonderful experience.”
He has also been involved for 42 years with the Ekka (Qld’s RNA show), as a successful competitor, judge and steward in the fish competition.
“Ours is the only show in Australia that has a fish competition, and it's been going for over 100 years at the Ekka,” he says.
His Rodney Rainbowfish books have sold 7,500+ copies in 5 years - substantial sales for an Australian author.
So it’s just as well he didn’t listen to his teachers when they told him to “forget about fish” to get a real job.
“Fish have always been my passion - and especially Australian native fish.
“Every morning talk at primary school, every assignment in high school was all about fish.
“And I can remember my teachers saying to me, to forget about fish. ‘Get on with your studies so you can get a real job’.
“It's ironic that I'm actually now employed by Education Queensland to look after the reptiles, snakes, and fish at a university (Griffith University’s Toohey Forest Environmental Education Centre).”
Another childhood setback was a serious illness with frequent hospital stays which thwarted his creek explorations for two years until he recovered.
Surprising, it led to other connections.
HIs family doctor was also a native fish enthusiast who encouraged Steve’s interest in fish.
Years later they went on expeditions to Cape York, Weipa and Papua New Guinea.
It turned out that his GP’s mother was also a fish enthusiast who founded her own aquarium club because women weren’t allowed to join such clubs back then.
“So it's funny how everything was intertw**ed from a very young age. I didn't realise there were all these people like me that were mad keen on native fish,” Steve says.
Now his wife Sue Anne, an experienced kindergarten educator, shares his interest and will often encourage spontaneous fishing forays into creeks they see on long drives together.
“She's the one who inspired me to write the books and to make people aware of (the need to care for the environment).
The five books focus on topics including pollution, invasive species, endangered species and housing development.
“The last one's about how we're all connected in the world,” Steve says.
“Even though it is primarily about fish, it's about bigger issues that affect us and that affect the fish themselves.
“It's not just about the fish … it's a bit like Bluey.
“Bluey isn't really about cattle dogs. It's about morals, ethics and values.
“The biggest message, I think, is that we only have one planet, and whether it's the Great Barrier Reef or the little creek in your backyard, they're all connected.”
Only 3% of the Earth’s water is freshwater, he says, “And most of that's frozen”.
Freshwater from rain and river run-offs is crucial for maintaining oceans’ salinity at the right level.
“If we don't look after that 3%, if we lose it, effectively, we have no planet.
“Fresh water is just critical to life - that’s my message.
“So (we each) need to conserve what's there.”
by Andrea Ripper
See https://www.rodneyrainbow.com.au/
Steve Baines Steve Baines
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