108 results
Environment
Industry

A study of seagrass prawn nursery grounds and juvenile prawn populations in north Queensland

Project number: 1984-022
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $0.00
Organisation: Department of Primary Industries (QLD)
Project start/end date: 28 Dec 1986 - 31 Dec 1986
:

Objectives

1. Provide detailed information required for consideration of management options
maps of areas with important juvenile prawn resources
2. prelim information on relative species distribution & timing of recruitment
information for fisheries mgrs responsibility for long term fishery survival

Final report

Final Report • 1986-12-31 • 1.48 MB
1984-022-DLD.pdf

Summary

Seagrasses are of immense ecological importance in marine ecosystems. Primary production rates for seagrass beds are amongst the highest recorded for marine and terrestrial systems. They have a well documented role as animal habitat, nursery grounds, and as substrate stabilizers.

The proximity of population centres to many of the seagrass­ colonised estuaries and embayments of the Australian coast has catalyzed research of the effects of pollution and erosion on these marine angiosperms. Although the importance of seagrass habitat and the potential for its loss has been recognized in these studies, ecological research remains surprisingly sparse. This is particularly so in the northern regions of Australia.

In northern Queensland, seagrass-vegetated areas are important as habitats for the juveniles of commercial penaeid prawn species. The tiger prawns, Penaeus esculentus and P. semisulcatus, and the endeavour prawn, Metapenaeus endeavouri, form the major component of an otter trawl fishery for prawns in this region worth around $60 million annually.

Environment
PROJECT NUMBER • 2015-216
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Informing inter-jurisdictional snapper management in eastern Australia

Snapper has been fished since the early development of the colony around Sydney Harbour in the late 18th century, but it was the arrival of steam power in the 1860’s that enabled fishers to start regularly targeting the abundant schools of snapper occurring in the deep-water fishing grounds...
ORGANISATION:
Department of Primary Industries (QLD)
SPECIES
Environment

Improving bycatch reduction strategies and escape vents in Queensland Mud Crab fisheries

Project number: 2021-119
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $129,915.00
Principal Investigator: Julie B. Robins
Organisation: Department of Primary Industries (QLD)
Project start/end date: 30 Apr 2022 - 29 Jul 2023
:
SPECIES

Need

The proposed work directly targets the opportunity
• to benchmark bycatch reduction devices (including escape vents) and strategies currently in use in the Queensland Crab Fishery,
• to trial refined escape vents for better (i) retention of legal crabs and exclusion of non-legal crabs and fish bycatch.

Recommended refinements to the regulation of escape vents in commercial mud crab pots will be provided to Fisheries Queensland by October/November 2022 for potential inclusion in the next round of regulatory amendments to the Crab Fishery.

More appropriately specified escape vents will produce better commercial outcomes (i.e., retention of legal crabs) and better ecological outcomes (e.g. exclusion of sub-legal crabs and finfish prone to entrapment in crab pots). Reports from crabbers indicate that some of the regulated escape vents allow legal crabs to escape, whilst the small escape vent (75 x 60 mm) reportedly allows very little bycatch to escape. A quantitative study that encompasses regional variation in mud crab morphometrics (i.e., carapace depth/height ~carapace width) would provide empirical data upon which management decisions can be objectively made.

Better documentation on marine turtle entrapment in crab pots (which is currently of limited public access) and gear modification to efficiently reduce or prevent marine turtle entrapment would be of benefit to threatened and endangered marine turtle populations of Queensland (in particular loggerhead turtles) and would contribute to the development of a risk mitigation strategy for the fishery.

Objectives

1. Benchmark bycatch reduction devices and strategies currently in use in the Queensland crab fishery.
2. Trial alternate configurations and advise on potential changes to escape vent regulations achieve better commercial and ecological outcomes.
3. Collate information on marine turtle interactions with crab pots (including ghost pots) and consider pot configuration(s) that could contribute to a risk mitigation strategy for marine turtles in the Qld crab fishery.
4. Develop options for adoption of bycatch reduction devices and strategies in the recreational sector of the Qld crab fishery.

Final report

ISBN: 978-0-6456352-7-0
Authors: J.B. Robins N.J. Stratford S. Seghers and S.M. Leahy
Final Report • 2024-11-11 • 6.03 MB
2021-119-DLD.pdf

Summary

The Queensland Crab Fishery is an iconic fishery, which encompasses the harvest of mud crabs (Scylla serrata, the Giant Mud Crab, and Scylla olivacea, the Orange Mud Crab) and Blue Swimmer Crabs (Portunus armatus and Portunus pelagicus), predominately using baited crab pots of various designs. The Fishery has a limited entry commercial sector that requires a C1 symbol to catch these species of crabs, plus possession of appropriate quota to catch mud crabs on the Queensland East Coast (EC1), Queensland Gulf of Carpentaria (GC1) or Blue Swimmer Crabs anywhere in Queensland (BC1). The Fishery also has a significant recreational sector, that uses similar apparatus and does not require a licence, but does have in possession limits.
The current research investigated the performance of escape vents in crab pots targeting Giant Mud Crabs to determine if current Queensland fisheries regulations should be revised to provide better commercial outcomes (i.e., retention of legal mud crabs – male and 150 mm carapace width or greater), whilst minimising the bycatch of non-legal crabs, finfish and other bycatch species, such as water rats. The research focussed on the Giant Mud Crab as it comprises greater than 99% of the commercial harvest of mud crabs in Queensland
The ongoing issue of marine turtle interactions with crabbing apparatus, including a recent increase of stranding reports, led to the research also collating available information about these interactions to support a risk mitigation strategy for the fishery’s interaction with protected marine turtle species.
Results are to be considered by management, Fisheries Queensland and the Crab Working Group as part of the Harvest Strategy arrangements for the Queensland Crab Fishery.
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 2017-019
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Freshwater fish attracting structures (FAS): Evaluating a new tool to improve fishing quality and access to fisheries resources in Australian impoundments

This document has been compiled from various sources and, to the authors’ knowledge, represents the best advice currently available regarding the use of fish attracting structures to improve recreational angling in Australian impoundments. Although the principles outlined in this document may...
ORGANISATION:
Department of Primary Industries (QLD)
Environment
PROJECT NUMBER • 1995-022
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Population dynamics and management of spanner crabs in southern Queensland

Spanner crabs (Ranina ranina) represent a valuable resource to southern Queensland and northern NSW. The fishery became established in the late 1970s, and as a result of an almost exponential increase in fishing effort between 1992 and 1995 an output-controlled limited entry management arrangement...
ORGANISATION:
Department of Primary Industries (QLD)
TAGS
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 1997-409
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Beche-de-mer knowata product development

Commercial fishing for beche-de-mer, or sea cucumbers has been carried out in Australian waters since the early 1800's. Species of commercial interest have included: the sandfish, black teatfish, prickly redfish and the lollyfish. Of these, the sandfish is the most common commercial species and is...
ORGANISATION:
Department of Primary Industries (QLD)
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 2012-213
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Developing jungle perch fingerling production to improve fishing opportunities

This project has for the first time demonstrated the feasibility of hatchery production of jungle perch fingerlings. The research on jungle perch production has enabled a hatchery production manual with accompanying videos to be produced. This has given private commercial hatcheries the information...
ORGANISATION:
Department of Primary Industries (QLD)
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