There is an urgent need to provide basic information to assist management of beche-de-mer fishery in Queenslands GBR and to determine sustainable harvest levels. The proposed research directly addresses two of the highest priority research topics for harvest fisheries outlined by QFMA (Research needs and priorities for the management of Queensland’s fisheries, QFMA, 1997, p 16), which are
· to estimate of standing stocks of beche-de-mer (holothurians) off the east coast
· to determine sustainable annual harvest levels of beche-de-mer off the east coast
The project also addresses the lower priority research topic
· to determine the ecology of the major beche-de-mer species (black teatfish)
Final report
The main purpose of the project was to provide biological data urgently needed for a sustainable management of the black teatfish fishery in the Great Barrier Reef (GBR); The principal goals were:
- 1) to estimate the standing stock of the black teatfish and estimate densities of other bêche-de-mer species by undertaking large scale surveys in the GBR, and
- 2) provide further information required to determine annual harvest levels and proposed closed seasons for the black teatfish including reproduction period and likely sources of supply of recruits;
- Following closure of the fishery the project was extended to:
- 3) establish re-colonisation rates of holothurians on the fished reefs where fishing had ceased, and
- 4) determine the sources of those recruits, and 5) estimate growth of holothurians using genetic fingerprinting to identify individuals;
- The project was also extended to include genetic work on sandfish (Holothuria scabra) in Northern Territory and Western Australia.
