Red Sea Urchin is a recreational and commercial hand-collected species along the coast of south-eastern Australia. The species likely has long life spans, comparatively narrow environmental tolerances, and despite having planktonic larvae and ample habitat may have limited recruitment in southern NSW due to the cold intolerance of the larvae (Byrne et al., 2022). With climate warming and more favourable thermal conditions for larvae and adults, Red Urchins may increase along the NSW south coast. Unfortunately, the demography, potential recruitment and connectivity of the species is not known.

The Red Sea Urchin resource has been supported by a SUTS closure network since 1994, but there is no long-term knowledge on how this affects populations or what protection it offers for the stock . Limited reproductive information means we are unable to estimate a suitable size at first capture for the species, and current fisheries management provisions may not sustainably maximise productivity . In addition, the impacts of ocean warming on Red Sea Urchin distributions remain unknown. The SUTS closures have recently been opened to harvesting of Centrostephanus rodgersii, thereby also affording an important opportunity to investigate potential ecological interactions between these two species.

The biological and ecological data gaps related to the Red Sea Urchin fishery must be addressed to support sustainable management of this resource over the long term, and ensure that the fishery remains productive, commercially profitable, and capable of supporting cultural and recreational fishing needs. This project will address biological and ecological knowledge gaps to support management of the Red Sea Urchin Fishery by:

• Characterising the Red Sea Urchin demography across SE Australia, including associated spatial variation such as that inside and outside SUTS closures ;
• Estimating reproductive parameters (size, age, roe quantity and quality) for Red Sea Urchin in SE Australia, including associated spatial variation such as that inside and outside SUTS closures;
• Quantifying ecological relationships between Red Sea Urchins (density, size) and environmental conditions (depth, substrate, relief, temperature) and with respect to co-distributed Long Spined Sea Urchin
• Predicting the impacts of ocean warming on Red Sea Urchin populations with comparative data for the Long Spined Sea Urchin; and
• Modelling larval dispersal potential of the Red Sea Urchin, particularly for larvae originating from within SUTS closures, to determine if they act as sources for adjacent fished areas .

Elspeth Macdonald, the CEO of Scottish Fishermen's Federation (SFF), is a key advocate for the fishing industry and has critical knowledge and experience with the spatial squeeze and the emerging offshore renewable energy sector. As such, WAFIC and the South Australian Northern Zone Rock Lobster Fishermen’s’ Association recognises an opportunity for the fishing industry and government representatives to share and learn from Scotland’s experiences. Through this exchange of knowledge, we hope to guide the development of Australian policy frameworks that encourage co-existence with commercial fisheries.

Tentatively, we are planning for Mrs Macdonald to arrive in Perth to attend high-level State Ministerial and State and Commonwealth Government meetings, before travelling to Adelaide to be a keynote speaker at the Rock Lobster Trans-Tasman Conference arranged by the South Australian Northern Zone Rock Lobster Fishermen’s’ Association and then attend a National Coordination Ocean Access Committee meeting coordinated by Seafood Industry Australia. Other potential opportunities may also be identified and discussed in the months leading up to Mrs Macdonald’s arrival.

Through the online platform, potential and existing employees will understand and have access to employment opportunities, resources to help build their knowledge, skills, competencies and experience (capabilities), identify career progression, training and development opportunities.

The platform content will focus on creating a positive/realistic narrative by providing a balanced portrayal, telling the story of seafood as a sustainable, future focused industry with growth opportunities and varied career options for all skill levels. Enabling an eye-opening experience, users will respond positively to being exposed to the breadth and depth of the seafood industry. Showcasing the variety of roles, sustainable solutions, low barriers to entry as well as transferability of skills will help paint the picture of a varied and inclusive industry where all are welcome.

This project aims to utilise existing and generate new content, as identified in project research to enable a successful platform launch.