Snapper Science Program
The Snapper Science Program is a 3-year, $5 million initiative addressing key issues that are relevant to Snapper fisheries throughout Australia, but with a focus on SA.
It is led by the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI) and co-funded by the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC) and the Government of South Australia. The program involves collaboration with researchers and organisations across southern Australia.
Information gathered through this program will improve the understanding of Snapper biology and contribute to improved assessment of fisheries. These outcomes will underpin future Snapper management strategies.
Research themes and projects
The Snapper Science Program includes 12 projects that are grouped into 3 research themes. These address the following priorities for Snapper:
- recruitment variability
- population biology
- stock structure
- estimates of fishable biomass.
Program governance
A steering committee oversees progress to make sure the program remains on track in delivering its objectives. The committee includes representatives from PIRSA, SARDI and FRDC.
A Snapper Science Stakeholder Group (SSSG) conveys stakeholder feedback to researchers at meetings, so that critical input is captured. Following each meeting, research updates are provided to the stakeholder groups that the SSSG represents.
A technical science group, consisting of internal working researchers, meets to:
- plan and establish project tasks
- conduct the research
- collect and analyse data
- deliver research outcomes.
Key dates
SARDI will deliver the next Snapper stock assessment report in November 2025, which informs the review of fishery closures and supports fisheries management decisions. See the previous stock assessment summaries.
The Snapper Science Program will be completed by June 2026, per the below timeline.
