The octopus fishery is a new fishery in Western Australia that has shown innovation in pot design and fishing practice to negate bycatch of other species, but commercial scale development has been impeded by lack of relevent information. An average of 140 tonnes of octopus are caught as by-catch every year by the Western Rock Lobster Fishery, however estimates are that these account for only 10% of octopus that actually predate on lobster in lobster traps, the remaining 90% evade capture. Annual landings from octopus developing fisheries have increased drastically from 1t in 1999 to 30 tonnes in 2008, and this expansion has been mirrored by a 200% increase in value from ~$4/kg in 2002 to $12/kg in 2008. Industry would like to see an expansion of effort within the fishery, particularly within areas fished by the rock lobster fishery, because the new LED trigger pots have enabled octopus-specific targeting of previously inaccessible habitat. However, so far the Department of Fisheries has resisted calls for a major expansion of the octopus fishery due to the paucity of stock assessment and biological information. Thus there is an urgent need to undertake innovative research and assessment of the Octopus cf. tetricus, fishery to guide Departmental policy to ensure any future expansion of the fishery occurs in a controlled and sustainable manner.