Tactical Research Fund: assessing technology changes and risks to the sustainable management of deepwater line fisheries in southern Queensland
There is a risk that Queensland’s deepwater (>200m) fish stocks are being fished at levels that are not sustainable Increased effort by commercial fishers in deep waters under normal line entitlements and the lack of knowledge of many of the targeted deepwater species (many of these species are presumed to be long-lived, schooling species susceptible to overexploitation) are key threats.
There is also anecdotal evidence that recreational fishers are fishing further offshore in deeper water and that recent improved fishing technologies have increased the effective effort on deepwater fish by all sectors. It is imperative that basic information on these deep-water stocks is collected at a time when management arrangements are being updated for rocky reef species (both shallow and deepwater).
The DEEDI Fisheries Observer Program has 100 days allocated to the deepwater fishery next calendar year, providing a unique opportunity to gather additional biological information on deepwater species that would not normally be collected as part of the routine core functions of the program. The provision of resources via a short-term “Tactical Research Fund” proposal would provide additional information at a time that is critical in the management cycle. It would also enable an assessment of the impact of improvements in vessel and gear technology (braided line, soft plastic lures, GPS etc) that could be used to better standardise catch rates. This is an essential requirement in any future stock assessments.
Fisheries Queensland is currently undertaking a gap analysis to identify information needs for completing an ecological risk assessment of this fishery. The proposed research is critical as it is designed to address the data deficiencies identified by that analysis.
Fisheries Queensland has identified this issue as a priority to be addressed over the next 18 months with a view to review management arrangements in 2012.
Final report
Strategic plan for fisheries research in QLD
Final report
The proposed workshop - "Population Dynamics for Fisheries Management" - will focus on what are the processes leading to the development of management advice
Final report
International Workshop on ciguatera management
Final report
An International Workshop on Ciguatera Management was held at QDPI's Joondoburri Conference Centre on Bribie Island, 13-16 April 1993. This meeting provided the first opportunity for discussion of issues related to ciguatera at an international forum in Australia. Fifty-six registrants participated in the scientific programme which included 41 contributions (either oral or poster presentations) from local and overseas researchers. The latest research on ciguatera was discussed, especially research with implications for the management of ciguatera.
The Workshop covered a broad range of topics through presentations from invited speakers and included two workshop sessions that addressed the clinical management of ciguatera and the detection of ciguateric fish. The Workshop reinforced the need for further research on (i) the detection of ciguateric fish and (ii) the environmental factors contributing to outbreaks of ciguatera.
Addressing uncertainties in the assessment and management of Queensland east coast Spanish Mackerel
As one of the most prominent species sold in northern Queensland fish shops, Spanish mackerel is iconic to seafood consumers as well as commercial, recreational, and charter fishers. However, a recent assessment of the Queensland East Coast stock raised significant concern about its sustainability, with a spawning biomass estimate below 20% of unfished levels (Tanimoto et al. 2021). Historical analyses indicate a substantial contraction of the spawning aggregations of Spanish mackerel in North Queensland, with those off Cairns being extirpated in the 1990s (Buckley et al. 2017). Previous stock assessments have also shown a trend of declining abundance over the last 20+ years (Welch et al. 2002, Campbell et al. 2012, O'Neill et al. 2018). This historical sustained decline, combined with the recent low biomass estimates, raise substantial uncertainty over the continued viability of the fishery.
This stock assessment result indicates the need to rebuild the stock in line with State and National policy objectives to reduce the number of overfished stocks. The high social and economic importance of Spanish mackerel in Queensland has led to significant public debate around uncertainty in the stock assessment, and the issue being debated in Queensland State Parliament.
As a result, key research gaps need to be addressed to increase the precision of future assessments and reaffirm stakeholder confidence in the stock assessment process. This project aims to address the following research gaps highlighted by the stock assessment: (1) determine the feasibility of using a CKMR method for estimating abundance of Spanish mackerel, (2) quantify cryptic mortality from shark depredation and post release survival, (3) improve catch and effort standardisation by better adjusting for potential hyperstability occurring at spawning aggregations and make the catch rate robust against potential management change, (4) assess the influence of key environmental variables on abundance and recruitment variability. This project will inform more accurate Spanish mackerel stock assessment, thereby increasing stakeholder confidence in line with Outcomes 4 and 5 of the FRDC R&D Plan (‘optimising benefits for the Australian community through fair resource sharing based on evidence-based management’ and ‘transparent decision-making tools that demonstrate best practice in fisheries management’). The project will also directly address the high priority research needs identified by the Queensland Spanish Mackerel Fishery Working Group.