Key Qld Fish Assessed for Sustainability

[Gad]

Taken from Fisheries Qld email newsletter 4-10-13

Fisheries Queensland’s 2012 stock status report has rated 31 of Queensland’s fish species as sustainable, up from 28 in 2011.

A comprehensive range of assessment tools were used including biological information on fish populations (e.g. age, length), commercial fishing logbooks, recreational catch estimates, and reviews by external scientists.

In the report, 75 key commercial and recreational fishing species were selected for scientific assessment of which 31 rated as sustainably fished, including three fish that are underutilised as a resource. Examples of sustainable fish include barramundi, Spanish mackerel, dusky flathead and tailor.

Only one fish stock continued to be cause for concern, and that is snapper it was again classified as overfished. Commercial and recreational catches of snapper remain low by historical standards.

Fisheries Queensland has stepped up the monitoring of snapper to better understand its status, including improved monitoring of snapper catches and an independent survey of juvenile snapper in Moreton Bay. In a few years we’ll repeat the full stock assessment for snapper using the updated information.

Assessments like this stock status report are critical to monitoring usage of our fisheries resources for long-term sustainability. By highlighting any gaps in information, we can put processes in place to gather data on these stocks for future assessments.

Key changes in stock status are:

• Spanish mackerel in the Gulf of Carpentaria moved from ‘uncertain’ to ‘sustainably fished’

• Balmain bugs, grey mackerel (east coast stock) and northern king prawns moved from ‘undefined’ to ‘sustainably fished’

• Coral trout moved from ‘sustainable fished’ to ‘uncertain’ due to low catches and catch rates

• Blue swimmer crab moved from ‘sustainably fished’ to ‘uncertain’ due to declining catch.

A stock assessment for coral trout is underway, and the first stock assessment for blue swimmer crab is planned as a result of the changes to their stock status.

The summary and full report on Qld`s 2012 fish stock status is available online at
/>http://www.daff.qld.gov.au/fisheries/monitoring-our-fisheries/fisheries-data-and-reports/sustainability-reporting/stock-status-assessments

For more information on the stock status report, contact 13 25 23.

[Terry H]

Has anyone noticed a decline in snapper themselves?

In the report, snapper have been classified as overfished for the last three years straight. Understandably there is going to be a lag between a change in fishing regulations and tangible results, however I wonder what (if any) impact the change in bag limits for Snapper has had on the fish stocks? I wonder what Fisheries are planning on doing with regards to the fish stock?

It would be interesting to see the quantity of snapper caught via commercial operations.

[Binder]

No, and from there data, it is certainly not a fishery under stress. Average size catch is quite big compared to minimum size, particularly when you consider the limit of one over 70.

I wonder if the drastically reduced number caught over the last 3 years has anything to do with the smaller possession limit

[Terry H]

I thought the report said commercial catches are the ones that are down? Has there been changes to the commercial regulations?

I don't have time to dig around and find it today; so it may be disclosed and I just didn't see it; but it would be interesting to see how they estimate recreational captures. Given we aren't required to report captures, these would be nothing more than an estimate and may or may not reflect true captures. Any feedback from recreational fisherman would also be highly subjective as I would think most anglers don't record/log all their captures for every trip.

At least the commercial guys (I assume) require accurate data to be maintained. So in a perfect world, commercial data is 100% accurate, no estimates.

I wonder if the drastically reduced number caught over the last 3 years has anything to do with the smaller possession limit

Do you mean reduce captures is the cause of reduced bag limits, or reduced bag limits is the cause of reduced captures?

[rayke1938]

Have a look at this that I copied from Ausfish.

LettertoMinisterMcVeighseriousflawsinFrameworkforDefiningStockStatusgreymackerel20.pdf

Cheers

Ray

Edit

sorry i do not know how to copy a pdf file but here is the link to ausfish.

http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/showthread.php?194588-What-is-wrong-with-Fisheries-%28Mis%29-Management-in-Qld&highlight=fisheries

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.pdf