Oral Presentation Australian Society for Fish Biology Conference 2024

Mitigating threatened species bycatch in commercial gillnet fisheries (107167)

Joni Pini-Fitzsimmons 1 , Peter Kyne 1
  1. Charles Darwin University, Brinkin, NORTHERN TERRITORY, Australia

Mitigating threatened species bycatch in Australian gillnet fisheries is a major management challenge. Where the deployment of gillnets overlaps with the habitat of threatened and migratory species, bycatch of these species can occur. The Northern Territory, Western Australia, and Gulf of Carpentaria hold the most significant remaining populations of sawfishes and river sharks with these forming the most numerous threatened species bycatch in local gillnet fisheries. Within these fisheries, the target bony fish are harvested at sustainable levels with high-quality seafood product providing important economic contributions locally and nationally. However, bycatch of threatened/migratory sawfishes, river sharks, and devil rays is an on-going issue, and arguably the most significant challenge facing these fisheries. Through collaboration with industry, scientists, fisheries managers, our project focuses on testing and trialing novel bycatch mitigation devices in northern Australian gillnet fisheries, as well as exploring feasible alternative gears to gillnets. Through this collaborative effort, we seek to develop effective strategies to safeguard threatened species while ensuring the sustainability of important local fisheries.