Publication Date

8-2026

Series Number

No. 359

Publisher

State of Western Australia (Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development)

City

Perth

ISBN

978-1-925415-45-2 (Print) 978-1-925415-46-9 (Online)

ISSN

1035-4549 (Print) 2202-5758 (Online)

Abstract

The smooth marron (Cherax cainii) (‘marron’) is endemic to freshwater dams and rivers of south-west Western Australia. Marron are managed as a single stock within the South-West Recreational Freshwater Resource and are highly vulnerable to overexploitation due to the biological characteristics of the species (e.g., low fecundity, localised populations) as well as environmental (e.g., habitat loss, reduction in rainfall) and human (e.g., fishing, land clearing) pressures on freshwater ecosystems.

Due to this vulnerability, this species has been the focus of research, monitoring and management since the 1970’s. Since 2000, annual phone-recall (2000 – 2021) and online-recall (2022 – 2026) surveys have been undertaken using the marron licence database as the sampling frame.

Participation in the Recreational Marron Fishery (marron licence holders aged five years or older) in 2026 (8 January – 5 February 2026) was 69% of licence holders or 8,544 fishers (95% CI 8,184 – 8,904). For those marron licence holders that fished in the previous 12-months, this was most commonly for food (30%), followed by being outdoors (19%), spending time with family (18%) and spending time with friends (14%).

Statewide fishing effort by licensed fishers for marron in 2026 was 28,064 days fished (95%CI 26,054 – 30,074); of which 68% or 19,131 (17,377 – 20,884) was in rivers and 32% or 8,893 (7,390 – 10,395) in dams. The top nine hydrographic basins captured 96% of the statewide fishing effort, with the Collie Basin, Harvey Basin, Warren Basin and Blackwood Basin having the highest levels of fishing effort. Fishing effort in these basins was predominately from the Wellington Dam and Collie River (Collie Basin), Harvey Dam (Harvey Basin), Warren River (Warren Basin) and Blackwood River (Blackwood Basin). These five locations captured 60% of the statewide fishing effort.

Statewide total catch (numbers) of marron by licensed fishers in 2026 was 193,193 individuals (95%CI 172,843 – 213,542); of which 70% or 135,710 (118,650 – 152,769) was caught in rivers and 30% or 52,179 (44,310 – 70,049) in dams. The top nine basins captured 96% of the statewide total catch, with the Collie Basin, Warren Basin, Harvey Basin and Blackwood Basin having the highest levels of total catch. Total catch in these basins was predominately from the Wellington Dam and Collie River (Collie Basin), Harvey Dam (Harvey Basin), Warren River (Warren Basin) and Blackwood River (Blackwood Basin). These five locations captured 66% of the statewide total catch.

Statewide retained catch (numbers) of marron by licensed fishers in 2026 was 86,915 individuals (95%CI 76,842 – 96,988); of which 73% or 63,344 (55,112 – 71,576) was caught in rivers and 27% or 23,339 (16,718 – 29,960) in dams. The overall release rate of marron in 2026 was 55%, with similar release rates in rivers (53%) and dams (59%).

Statewide retained catch per unit effort (CPUE) by licensed fishers in 2026 was 3.1 marron per fisher day (95%CI 2.8 – 3.3). The retained CPUE of marron in rivers was Fisheries Research Report [Western Australia] No. 365  |  Page 1  3.4 (3.1 – 3.7) which was higher than the 2.2 (1.9 – 2.5) in dams. The highest retained CPUE were reported in the Shannon Basin, Warren Basin and Moore-Hill Basin. The highest retained CPUE in these basins were predominately from the Deep River (Shannon Basin), Warren River (Warren Basin) and Moore River (Moore-Hill Basin).

Although the retained catch has fluctuated across years, the catch range (defined by the 95% confidence intervals for the retained catch) has been within the acceptable catch range of 50,000 – 100,000 since 2003.

Ongoing monitoring and management of the Recreational Marron Fishery is required to ensure it continues to be sustainable in an era of changing environmental conditions. A key part of this is ensuring that the annual online-recall surveys continue to provide information at scales appropriate to support assessment and management decisions.

Number of Pages

28

Keywords

Cherax cainii, south west drainage division, hydrographic basin, online survey, fishing effort, retained catch, catch per unit effort

Disciplines

Aquaculture and Fisheries

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