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John Dory inhabits coastal and continental shelf waters around most of Australia. Stocks in south-eastern Australia are depleted, while the NT and WA stocks are classified as negligible, with low catch volumes.

John Dory inhabits coastal and continental-shelf waters around most of Australia. The majority of the catch is taken along the eastern and southern coasts, with a small catch reported from the Northern Territory Timor Reef Fishery. The main distribution stretches from Moreton Bay in southern Queensland south and west to Cape Cuvier in Western Australia, with a limited distribution in eastern Bass Strait. John Dory are solitary as adults [Stergiou and Fourtouni 1991] and are reported to inhabit depths from 5 to 360 m. Most of the catch is taken in 50–200 m depth, with over half of the catch taken at 100–149 m depth [Kailola et al. 1993; Staples 1995]. The stock structure of this species off Australia is poorly understood [Staples 1995]. Along the eastern and south-eastern coasts, John Dory is considered to constitute a single biological stock for assessment and management purposes.

Here, assessment of stock status is presented at the biological stock level—South Eastern Australia, and at the jurisdictional level—Western Australia and Northern Territory.

Western Australia

Stock status for John Dory in Western Australia is reported as Negligible due to historically low catches in this jurisdiction, and because the stock has generally not been subject to targeted fishing. The Western Australian commercial catch from 2008 to 2019 averaged less than 35 kg per annum, and John Dory is not a major component of recreational landings. Fishing is unlikely to be having a negative impact on the stock.

Commonwealth – Commercial (Management Methods/Catch) Data provided for the Commonwealth align with the Commonwealth Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery for the 2021–22 financial year.

Commonwealth – Recreational The Commonwealth does not manage recreational fishing in Commonwealth waters. Recreational fishing in Commonwealth waters is managed by the state or territory immediately adjacent to those waters, under its management regulations.  

Commonwealth – Indigenous The Australian government does not manage non-commercial Indigenous fishing in Commonwealth waters, with the exception of Torres Strait. In general, non-commercial Indigenous fishing in Commonwealth waters is managed by the state or territory immediately adjacent to those waters

Queensland – Indigenous (Management Methods) for more information see https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries/traditional-fishing

Queensland – Recreational Fishing (Catch). Data with high uncertainty (Residual Error >50 %) has been excluded and listed as unknown. More information available at: https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries/monitoring-research/monitoring-reporting/statewide-recreational-fishing-surveys

Queensland – Commercial (Catch). QLD commercial and charter data has been sourced from the commercial fisheries logbook program. Further information available through the Fisheries Summary Report https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries/monitoring-research/data/queensland-fisheries-summary-report

New South Wales - Recreational (Catch)  Recreational catch estimate of “Negligible” is based on zero catches of John Dory recorded during the 2019–20 survey of the catch by 1–3 year NSW recreational licence holders [Murphy et al. 2022]

New South Wales - Indigenous (Management Methods)  Cultural Fishing Management Arrangements. See https://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/fishing/aboriginal-fishing

Victoria – Indigenous (Management Methods) A person who identifies as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander is exempt from the need to obtain a Victorian recreational fishing licence, provided they comply with all other rules that apply to recreational fishers, including rules on equipment, catch limits, size limits and restricted areas. Traditional (non-commercial) fishing activities that are carried out by members of a traditional owner group entity under an agreement pursuant to Victoria’s Traditional Owner Settlement Act 2010 are also exempt from the need to hold a recreational fishing licence, subject to any conditions outlined in the agreement. Native title holders are also exempt from the need to obtain a recreational fishing licence under the provisions of the Commonwealth’s Native Title Act 1993.

1. AFMA 2020, Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery South East Resource Assessment Group (SERAG) meeting 2.1, minutes, 23–24 November 2020, Australian Fisheries Management Authority, Canberra.
2. AFMA 2021a, Harvest strategy framework for the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery 2009 (amended 2021), Australian Fisheries Management Authority, Canberra.
3. AFMA 2021b, South East Scalefish and Shark Fishery South East Resource Assessment Group (SERAG) meeting 2, minutes, 19–20 October 2021, Australian Fisheries Management Authority, Canberra.
4. Althaus, F, Thomson, R and Sutton, C 2021, Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery catches and discards for TAC purposes using data until 2020, CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere, Hobart.
5. Burch, P, Sutton, C, Cannard, T and Bradford, RW 2021, An investigation of the bycatch of rebuilding and other selected species in the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery, CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere, Hobart.
6. Emery, T, Wright, D, Davis, K, Keller, K, Woodhams, J and Curtotti, R 2022, Commonwealth Trawl and Scalefish Hook sectors, in Patterson, H, Bromhead, D, Galeano, D, Larcombe, J, Timmiss, T, Woodhams, J and Curtotti, R (eds), Fishery status reports 2022, Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences, Canberra.
7. Kailola, PJ, Williams, MJ, Stewart, PC, Reichelt, RE, McNee, A and Grieve, C 1993, Australian Fisheries Resources, Australian Bureau of Resource Sciences and the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation, Canberra.
8. Murphy, JJ, Ochwada-Doyle, FA, West, LD, Stark, KE, Hughes, JM and Taylor, MD 2022, Survey of recreational fishing in NSW, 2019/20 – Key Results, NSW DPI – Fisheries Final Report Series No. 161, ISSN 2204-8669.
9. Penney, A 2020, Exploratory data-poor catch-MSY and production model assessments for john dory in the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery, Pisces Australis (Pty) Ltd, Canberra.
10. Sporcic 2021, Draft tier 4 assessments for selected SESSF species (data to 2020), CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere, Hobart.
11. Staples D 1995, John Dory 1994, Stock Assessment Report, South East Fishery Assessment Group, Australia Fisheries Management Authority, Canberra.
12. Stergiou, KI and Fourtouni, H 1991, Food habits, ontogenetic diet shifts and selectivity in Zeus faber Linnaeus, 1758, Journal Fish Biology, 39: 589–603.
13. Teixeira, D, Janes, R and Webley, J 2021, 2019/20 Statewide Recreational Fishing Survey Key Results, Project Report, State of Queensland, Brisbane.
14. Webley, J, McInnes, K, Teixeira, D, Lawson, A and Quinn, R 2015, Statewide Recreational Fishing Survey 2013–14, Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Brisbane.