Fisheries minister Dave Kelly has applauded recreational fishers for their active participation in WA’s third recreational boat fishing survey.
The survey is the most comprehensive of its kind in Australia.
The state-wide survey indicated there was a high level of compliance with the fishing rules, and that recreational fishers had a strong sense of stewardship for fish stocks.
Mr Kelly said good science was vital for effectively managing the state’s fisheries to ensure there was fish for the future, and WA maintained its reputation for having some of the best fisheries in the world.
“I am pleased to see that the majority of recreational fishers take their stewardship role seriously, and keep sustainability and the future enjoyment of WA fishing foremost in their minds,” he said.
The survey has been carried out every two years to compare catches over time.
The latest snapshot shows an estimated 680,000 blue swimmer crabs were fished in 12 months, making it the most caught species.
School whiting was the most captured finfish with an estimated 230,000 reeled in by recreational fishers, followed by Australian herring, pink snapper and dhufish.
According to the survey, 70 per cent of crabs and one in every four school whiting caught, along with 75 per cent of pink snapper, one in five herring and 35 per cent of rock lobsters, were released by fishers for a range of reasons, including minimum size limits.
