Publication Date

8-2005

Series Number

Project No. 1999/153

Publisher

Department of Fisheries WA

City

North Beach

ISBN

1 877098 52 3

Abstract

This study has determined the optimal strategies to achieve statistically robust indices of recruitment of five key finfish species in south-western Australia. For another two species such indices could not be established. The sampling strategies developed will initially focus on the most appropriate location, month, and lunar phase, after which fine-tuning of the sampling activity will be undertaken with respect to time of day, tide height, weather conditions etc. A significant outcome from the project is that five finfish species have a sampling strategy for recruits that can be utilized as a monitoring program for the recreational and commercial fisheries that target these species. Because it is difficult to attract and retain research funds for these minor fishery species, demonstration of an optimal sampling strategy that can be used to predict fishery performance is an invaluable and relatively cheap stock assessment tool. An ongoing and cost–effective monitoring program that is under-pinned by a detailed investigation of variability in abundance of recruits and that demonstrates a link between recruits and subsequent abundance of catchable age classes will facilitate better long term management of the key inshore finfish stocks in south-western Australia. This is particularly relevant now that Western Australia has developed, and is currently implementing, an integrated approach to fisheries management, whereby the total exploitation on any one fish stock will be managed through simultaneous consideration of all exploitive sectors.

Number of Pages

145

Keywords

inshore, recruitment, recruitment indices, small-scale fisheries

Disciplines

Aquaculture and Fisheries | Marine Biology

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