The Quarterly Catch September 2024
Southern Rock Lobster season
In South Australia, the recreational Southern Rock Lobster fishery is divided into two zones: northern and southern.
Each year, rock lobster catches are permitted:
- 1 October to 31 May in the Southern Zone
- 1 November to 31 May in the Northern Zone.
See Southern Rock Lobster to familiarise yourself with:
- size, bag and boat limits
- how to mark the tail
- permitted devices
- protected areas.
Fishers are advised that biosecurity control measures are currently in place to reduce the spread of abalone viral ganglioneuritis (AVG), that apply to South Australia's rock lobster fishery. If you're heading out onto the water this season, make sure you familiarise yourself with the code of practice ( ).
How can you reduce the spread of abalone disease and practice good biosecurity measures?
- CHECK: all vessels, fishing, diving and surfing equipment and remove anything including water, sand or seaweed. Check your abalone catch for signs of illness.
- CLEAN: boats at home or at a commercial car wash. Wash your wetsuits, fishing and diving equipment with detergent and fresh water.
- DRY: all boating, fishing and diving equipment completely, preferably in the sun, before heading out into the water again.
Rock lobster tail marking changes
The State Government has acted on calls from the recreational fishing community to make changes to the way recreationally caught rock lobster are marked, which identifies them from those commercially caught.
From 1 October 2024, recreational fishers can mark the middle tail fan of caught rock lobsters (all species) with a hole punch not less than 10 mm or using the current tail clipping method.
The changes bring South Australia into line with most other states where rock lobster is caught recreationally. The requirement to mark the rock lobster before landing remains.
See Southern Rock Lobster: Fishing rules to find out more.
Measure your crab catch
Crabbing is a popular pastime for many and as the waters warm up this spring, the Blue Swimmer Crab (Portunus armatus) and Sand Crab (Ovalipes australiensis) will be more readily available.
As the crab season begins, brush up on the crab fishery regulations to ensure the long-term health of our main species in South Australia:
- The minimum size for a Blue Swimmer Crab is 11 cm, measured across the carapace from the base of the largest spines.
- The minimum size for the Sand Crab is 10 cm, measured across the widest point of the carapace.
- The personal daily bag limit is a combined total of 20 crabs of either species.
See our Fishcare Volunteers who attend fishing and community events around SA to pick up your free measurement device, or make a request to have one sent out by calling the Fishwatch hotline on 1800 065 522.
Become a Fishcare volunteer
Want to ensure your fishing communities can enjoy their catch for years to come? Join our Fishcare volunteers who work across South Australia to keep our oceans, rivers and lakes sustainable to protect and preserve our fishing resources.
Volunteers are located across the state with teams in metro Adelaide, the Riverland, Yorke Peninsula, Victor Harbor and the Limestone Coast.
"Our Fishcare volunteers are an enthusiasts crew who love nothing more than getting out and about and speaking to fishers," said Toni Crosbie, Fishcare Volunteer Coordinator.
Fishcare volunteers travel along the beach and river to share information about fisheries management arrangements including size, bag, and boat limits, and fishery closures. They also give out gauges, information brochures and answer questions on rules and regulations.
Visit our Fishcare volunteers at the following SA events in September and October:
- Murray Bridge show – 28 September 2024
- Pt Pirie Smelters picnic – 2 October 2024
- Strathalbyn Show – 7 October 2024
- Pt Elliot Show – 12 to 13 October 2024
- SA Boat and Fishing Show – 25 to 27 October 2024
Find out more and apply to join the team at Fishcare volunteers.
Species allocation assessments
South Australia's fisheries resources are shared between commercial, recreational and Aboriginal traditional fishing sectors. As required under the Fisheries Management Act 2007, formal allocations to these sectors are set out in PIRSA fishery management plans for approximately 30 key species.
To monitor allocations, PIRSA undertakes periodic assessments consistent with our Allocation Policy. These assessments are undertaken to establish if sector allocations are being adhered, and if not, whether any changes to the allocations or management arrangements are needed.
Following the release of the Survey of Recreational Fishing in South Australia 2021–22, sector catches were reviewed which identified a number of species to undergo an allocation assessment, due to specific sectors exceeding their allocated proportion of total catch.
During this process, 10 species were identified for assessment:
| Species | Recreational allocation | Commercial allocation | Sector exceeding proportion of total catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black Bream | 48.4% | 50.6% | Recreational |
| Mullet spp. (in marine waters) | 44.8% | 54.2% | Recreational |
| Mulloway (in inland waters) | 27.6% | 71.4% | Commercial |
| King George Whiting | 48.5% | 50.5% | Recreational |
| Southern Garfish | 19.5% | 79.5% | Commercial |
| Australian Herring | 42.5% | 56.5% | Commercial |
| Sand Crab | 14% | 85% | Commercial |
| Mud Cockle (Vongole) | 99.7% | 0.15% | Recreational |
| Golden Perch | 27.4% | 71.6% | Commercial |
| Yellowtail Kingfish | 98.88% | 0.12% | Commercial |
Note: Aboriginal traditional share of each species is 1% with the exception of Vongole which is 0.15%.
Each species was assessed thoroughly in an initial stage 1 assessment to determine which species should proceed to a full stage 2 assessment, to be undertaken by the independent Allocation Review Committee (ARC).
The initial assessment was conducted by a Working Group, consisting of representatives from each of the fisheries, who considered whether any sector had exceeded their proportion of a sustainable yield, before analysing potential explanatory factors and trends.
This assessment resulted in 4 species (Black Bream, King George Whiting, Southern Garfish and Sand Crab) recommended to proceed to a full Stage 2 assessment.
The ARC is set to meet on 17 and 18 December for the full assessments, with potential outcomes being:
- no further action required
- manage the sector that has breached back within their allocation
- adjust allocations (for example, to reflect a change or shift in value).
Further details to come. For more information, see Fisheries allocations.
Snapper stock enhancement
Over the past year, more than 360,000 baby Snapper, referred to as fingerlings, have been released into recognised nursery areas for Snapper in northern Spencer Gulf and Gulf St Vincent.
The Aquaculture team at SARDI are currently preparing for yet another spawning season in November 2024 through to January 2025, where they will collect eggs from spawning adults and rear thousands more fingerlings for release into South Australian waters.
Elisha Lovell, Senior Research Officer at SARDI, leads the aquaculture team in spawning and rearing Snapper fingerlings for release across the gulfs. Elisha emphasised the importance of this project for Snapper.
"It’s a very important project and Snapper being the iconic species it is, I think it’s important that we do every bit that we can to get that fishery open," she said.
Find out more about the Snapper stock enhancement program, which is one component of the $8.8 million Snapper Recovery Package.
Transcript
[Clare Scriven] Yeah look it's really fantastic to be down here at Black Point releasing 20,000 snapper fingerlings into the ocean as part of the restocking project. We know it's been really difficult having to have a closure of snapper in all of the state apart from the south east, but the work that SARDI's been doing and PIRSA's been doing more broadly, as well as Fishcare volunteers and others, is really important in terms of trying to get the stocks up so that they can be sustainable and hopefully in the future we can open up to snapper fishing again in the rest of the state.
[Elisha Lovell] This project target is to get 450,000 fingerlings per gulf over the past two years to help replenish those stocks that have been depleted. At the facility at West Beach, we rely on a lot of the natural water so we have to kind of work with nature, with the water temperature and the sunlight, we try and get three spawns in over the natural recruitment period, which is November to February, we've got wild caught brood stock that we have on site, we induce them with a hormone from there, yeah that's where the eggs come through, and then we rear them up into this fingerling stage, which takes approximately 80 to 100 days.
[Jamie Bussenschutt] Yeah, I was just interested, I haven't seen this sort of operation here at Black Point before, obviously replenishing the stocks of snapper, which is a solid thing to sustain the fishing I think is, keeps people coming back here, and it's a beautiful place, and not only the beaches are good, but if the fishing is good too well, then that's just a bonus as well so.
[Elisha Lovell] So yeah, we mark the otolith, the ear bone of the fish, with a stain called alizarin, so that way when the scientists go out into the wild they know whether the fish that they've caught are from the hatchery or from natural recruitment. This is one of the first marine restockings we've had in South Australia, so it is a milestone project, it is a very important project and snapper being the iconic species I think it's important that we do every bit that we can to get that fishery open.
Dates to note
- 1 October – Recreational southern zone rock lobster fishery opens
- 13 October – Gone Fishing Day
- 1 November – Recreational northern zone rock lobster fishery opens
- 1 November – Pipi (Goolwa cockle) season opens
- 1 December – Bream season in Onkaparinga River opens
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