NSW Research Angler Program

NSW Research Angler ProgramNewsletter No. 1 (December 2013)NSW Research Angler ProgramNewsletter No. 1 – December 2013Welcome to the first ever NSW Research Angler Program newsletter – providing you,the research anglers and spearfishers of NSW, feedback on the data you arecollecting by donating your frames to research.“Kick off”! – September 2013After almost 9 months of behind-thescenes organisation, the NSWResearch Angler Program officiallycommenced at the start of September2013.This innovative new program isgenerously funded by the RecreationalFishing Trust and aims to improve ourunderstanding of importantrecreational fish populations byencouraging the estimated one millionrecreational fishers in NSW to donatethe frames of fish they catch toresearch.The program enables passionaterecreational fishers to be activelyinvolved in the collection of data whichwill ultimately be used in theassessment and monitoring of theirfavourite species.Julian Hughes records data from a donatedmulloway frame in the laboratory.

NSW Research Angler ProgramNewsletter No. 1 (December 2013)Project Progress – Spring 2013To date, data from 159 mulloway (Argyrosomus japonicus) have been collected fromrecreationally-caught individuals donated to the program ranging in size from 46.3 to164.0 cm. Excitingly, donations of frames to the program has provided data from thefour oldest and largest mulloway so far recorded in NSW including the second oldestindividual recorded in Australia; a 34 year old fish caught in the Shoalhaven River inFebruary 2012! The data this program will collect from the large (and potentially old)individuals recreational mulloway fishers are so good at targeting will dramaticallyimprove our overall understanding of the mulloway stock in NSW.14n 159Percent 060-6555-6050-5545-500Total Length Class (cm)Length frequency of mulloway donated to the NSW Research Angler Program in September,October and November 2013.180160Total length (cm)14012010080604020005101520253035Estimated age (years)Size-at-age data for mulloway in NSW: despite the program running for just three months,recreational donations of mulloway frames have resulted in access to information from the fouroldest mulloway so far recorded in NSW (circled points).

NSW Research Angler ProgramVaughan Little with his 47.5 kg mullowaycaught from the Shoalhaven River inFebruary 2012. Photo: Fishing WorldNewsletter No. 1 (December 2013)Microscope image of the sectioned otolithfrom this fish showing clearly the 34 growthrings used to estimate its impressive age.The graph below shows the number of mulloway frames donated to the program byrecreational fishers to the end of November 2013. The graph shows that the programhas proven very popular with keen mulloway fishers from the outset, particularly onthe Mid-North Coast where almost 60 frames have so far been donated; over 40 fromthe area around Coffs Harbour alone. We aim to collect data from at least 300 framesfrom each of the sampling zones along the NSW coast by the end of September2015. Not surprisingly, we are on track to collect adequate numbers of mullowayframes from Zone 2 (Laurieton – Evans Head) but more frames are needed fromZones 1, 3, 4 and 5.Number of frames donated6050403020100Evans Head – NSWQld borderLaurieton – EvansHeadNewcastle –LaurietonSydney – NewcastleNSW-Vic border –SydneyZone 1Zone 2Zone 3Zone 4Zone 5Number of mulloway frames donated by recreational fishers to the NSW Research AnglerProgram from the start of the project to November 2013. Mulloway image Bernard YauThe collection of a sufficient number of samples from each zone is crucial indeveloping the age-composition data that is required to assist Fisheries NSW inmonitoring the NSW mulloway stock. It is also critical that we get a good ‘snapshot’ ofthe sizes and ages of mulloway collected from the different habitats where mullowayare caught – in estuaries, from the shore (beach, rocks, breakwalls) and offshore. Todate, most of our donations have come from fish caught from shore (79%) or fromestuaries (20%), so we really need your help to increase the numbers of frames from

NSW Research Angler ProgramNewsletter No. 1 (December 2013)mulloway caught in the offshore fishery. If you fish for mulloway offshore, pleasedon’t hesitate to contact us (research.angler@dpi.nsw.gov.au) and we will direct youto your nearest drop-off point (or personally collect the frames if practicable).Hopefully some good weather through summer will contribute to some good offshoremulloway catches and frames donated.The enormous popularity of mullowaywith spearfishers has been welldemonstrated with more than 20donations to the program made byenthusiastic members of the NSWspearfishing community, including twoof the largest fish (see below).Special mention must be made of thecontributions of the North ShoreUnderwater Club, Sans SouciDolphins Spearfishing Club and theSouth Sydney Amateur FishingAssociation; all of whom have hostedpresentations on the program byresearchers at their monthly meetings.If you are a member of a fishing club(spearfishing or angling) and areinterested in having a presentation onthe program made at your club, pleasedon’t hesitate to get in contact with us(research.angler@dpi.nsw.gov.au) andwe’ll organise for someone to come‘revv up’ your fishing club!Novice spearfisher and keen researchangler Heath Folpp with a 33 kg mullowayfrom the Mid-North Coast.On November 10, the ResearchAngler Program team attended theweigh-in of the 21st annualHawkesbury Classic fishingtournament at the Pitt Town Sport &Rec Club. The Hawkesbury River isthe spiritual home of mulloway fishingin NSW and didn’t disappoint this yearwith our team measuring andremoving otoliths from some finespecimens up to 107.0 cm caught overthe 3 day event.stWeigh-in and raffle at the 21 annualHawkesbury Classic.Despite the rain, we spoke to a lot ofkeen mulloway anglers on the day andwere also lucky enough to beinterviewed by HawkesburyCommunity Radio!

NSW Research Angler ProgramNewsletter No. 1 (December 2013)Thanks to the Pitt Town Fishing Clubfor getting us involved in such a greatevent and to all the competitors wholet us collect data from their catches;you will all receive one of ourResearch Angler Program researchfeedback certificates.Left: 107 cm mulloway caught by CraigstWilliams at the 21 annual HawkesburyClassic.What do we do with your frames?From each donated frame, we canmeasure the length of the fish and byremoving the otoliths (also known asearbones or jewels) from the skull andanalysing them, we can estimate theage of the fish. These two simplepieces of biological data on each fishprovide Fisheries NSW scientists withmuch of the information required forage and length-based monitoring ofthe stock.Donated frames are periodicallycollected by Fisheries NSW staff fromone of the 26 participating tackleshopand Fisheries Office drop-off pointsbetween Tweed Heads and Bermagui.Once in the laboratory, the length, sexand reproductive state of eachdonated fish are recorded. Thedissected otoliths are prepared for ageestimation by cutting a very thin slice(called a section) through the core ofthe otolith, mounting it on a glass slideand then viewing it under amicroscope. We then count thenumber of growth rings in the sectionto estimate for how many years thefish has been alive.Age data from collected fish is thenused to build a picture of the agestructure of the overall population.These combined data detail how manyfish there are of each age in the stock,which helps us evaluate the health ofthe species. By collecting data overtime we can also see how the agestructure of the stock may bechanging.Extracting otoliths from a donated 63.0 cmmulloway in the lab.Why start with mulloway?The program has “kicked off” with one of NSW’s most iconic recreational fishspecies, the mighty mulloway. Mulloway were identified as a priority species forcollection of biological data from fish caught by the recreational fishing sector

NSW Research Angler ProgramNewsletter No. 1 (December 2013)because of both their enormous popularity amongst anglers and spearfishers, as wellas ongoing concerns for the health of the mulloway stock. These concerns for thestatus of the mulloway stock in NSW stem from several pieces of information: A)Routine monitoring by Fisheries NSW has shown that commercial landings ofmulloway have been steadily declining since the mid-1970s with currentlandings amongst the lowest recorded for this species.Anecdotal reports from anglers and spearfishers has also suggested that thenumber of large individuals encountered has dramatically decreased in thelast 20 yearsThe species is currently assessed as being “overfished” in NSW, whichmeans that the mortality rate due to fishing of juveniles and adults is too highand there are too few large fish in the population to maintain sufficientrecruitment for future sustainable harvesting.While mulloway can live for more than 30 years, the majority ( 98%) of theindividuals Fisheries NSW have so far collected age data from are less thanfive years old. For a species with this longevity as well as relatively fastgrowth, a healthier stock would have more old individuals than we see.B)A) Commercial landings (including available historical records) for mulloway in NSW from19445/45 to 2012/13. B) Age structure for mulloway in NSW: despite being able to live for over 30years, 98% of the mulloway so far collected by Fisheries NSW are less than 5 years old.The concerns for the status of the mulloway stock in NSW have culminated in therecent changes to the management of mulloway in NSW and the Research AnglerProgram will also provide useful data for evaluating the effects of these changes onthe mulloway stock. For full details of these changes, please go l/saltwater/sw-species/mulloway/rules

NSW Research Angler ProgramNewsletter No. 1 (December 2013)How do I donate my frames to research?It’s so easy! Just fillet your catch andplace the rest into a plastic bag orsimilar. Frames can be donated freshor frozen, but must be accompaniedby a label containing some basiccapture details: Mulloway frame and label bagged and readyfor donation.Who caught the fish – nameand contact details (phonenumber, postal or emailaddress) so we can provideresearch feedback and enteryou into the monthly prize drawWhen the fish was caught –date.Where the fish was caught –just so we can determine arough geographic location andwhether the fish was caught inan estuary, from the shore(rocks, beach or breakwall) oroffshore.If you are unable to keep the entireframe, you can just donate the head orthe otoliths as long as information onthe total length of the fish is includedwith the capture details.Mulloway head bagged and ready fordonation. Remember, to be useful forresearch, the length of the fish must berecorded on the label containing capturedetails for all otolith or head-onlydonations.Every mulloway frame donated to theprogram entitles the donor to beentered into a monthly draw to winsome great fishing prizes!Research FeedbackFor every mulloway frame donated tothe program, we will also send thedonor a Research FeedbackCertificate detailing the biologicalinformation (length, estimated age andsex) collected from the fish theycaught as well as information on howtheir fish fits into the data FisheriesNSW currently have for mulloway.Left: Example Research FeedbackCertificate.