Barramundi (2023)
Lates calcarifer
Date Published: June 2023
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Summary
Of the nine Barramundi stocks across WA, the NT and QLD targeted by commercial fishers, seven are sustainable. The Princess Charlotte Bay stock is undefined as it no longer has catch and effort indicators due to management changes. The South-East Coast stock at the species' cool-water range limits in southern QLD is undefined.
Stock Status Overview
Jurisdiction | Stock | Stock status | Indicators |
---|---|---|---|
Western Australia | Western Australia | Sustainable | Catch, effort, CPUE |
Stock Structure
Barramundi (Lates calcarifer) are a large, predatory fish distributed across most of the Indo-West Pacific region, from the Arabian Gulf to China, Taiwan, Papua New Guinea and northern Australia [FAO 2020]. They are protandrous hermaphrodites (maturing as males first, then changing sex to female; Moore [1979]) that exhibit individual variation in habitat utilisation/migratory patterns during their life history [Crook et al. 2016]. The productivity of Barramundi populations is closely linked to variation in rainfall, with wetter years linked to enhanced juvenile growth, recruitment, and fishery productivity [Staunton-Smith et al. 2004; Robins et al. 2005; Halliday et al. 2010; Leahy and Robins 2021; Crook et al. 2022].
The genetic stock structure of Barramundi in Australia is complex. Keenan [1994] described 16 subpopulations of this species (through allozyme analyses) across most of its Australian range, with each subpopulation encompassing an individual catchment, or several adjacent catchments. More recently, Jerry et al. [2013] and Loughnan et al. [2019] described 21 distinct subpopulations (through microsatellite analyses) from samples collected over a wider geographic range than that of Keenan [1994]; noting that both recent works were based on the same set of tissue samples, many of which were initially collated by Keenan [1994].
Difficulties in obtaining relevant biological and catch-and-effort information from each biological stock in Western Australia and the Northern Territory precludes individual assessments of these stocks. Therefore, the assessments for these jurisdictions were undertaken at the level of the management unit (Kimberley Gillnet and Barramundi Managed Fishery, Western Australia; and Barramundi Fishery, Northern Territory). For Queensland, six biological stocks described by Keenan [1994] [Fisheries Queensland 2010] with an additional seventh stock of ‘vagrant’ fish, that venture south of 26⁰ South have been assessed. An eighth stock of Barramundi was identified in Queensland in more recent studies [Jerry et al. 2013; Loughnan et al. 2019], however tag-recapture information indicates that the boundaries of these subpopulations are somewhat porous, with individual fish moving between subpopulations [Infofish Australia 2014, 2020]). Additionally, there are practical limits on the number of assessments that can be undertaken on this species. The seven biological stocks assessed in Queensland are: Southern Gulf of Carpentaria, Northern Gulf of Carpentaria, Princess Charlotte Bay, North-East Coast, Mackay, Central East Coast and South-East Coast.
Here, assessment of stock status is presented at the management unit level—Kimberley Gillnet and Barramundi Managed Fishery (Western Australia), Barramundi Fishery (Northern Territory); and the biological stock level—Southern Gulf of Carpentaria, Northern Gulf of Carpentaria, Princess Charlotte Bay, North-East Coast, Mackay, Central East Coast and South-East Coast (Queensland).
Stock Status
Western Australia
Barramundi is an indicator species [see Newman et al. 2018] for the North Coast Nearshore and Estuarine Resource (NCNER) and as such the stock status of Barramundi subsequently determines the risk-level for the sustainability of the suite of species in the NCNER. Barramundi is currently only landed commercially in the Kimberley Gillnet and Barramundi Managed Fishery (KGBMF). The harvest strategy of the KGBMF is based on a constant commercial catch policy, where the annual commercial catches of Barramundi are allowed to vary within a target catch range, based on a historical catch range in a period when the fishery was stable (1989–99), and exploitation was considered sustainable. The target catch range was calculated as 33–44 tonnes (t) [Trinnie et al. 2023] with a limit reference range of 23–54 t. This assessment of Barramundi is supported by predictions for biomass and harvest rate from a data-limited Catch-MSY assessment model, with catches compared periodically to a model prediction for maximum sustainable yield (MSY).
In 2022, commercial Barramundi catch within the KGBMF of 46.7 t was above the upper end of the target catch range, but below the upper end of the limit range. Over the past 10 years, commercial catches have generally been between the upper end of the target catch range but below upper end of limit range. Commercial catch per unit effort (CPUE) over the last 10 years has generally been increasing, reaching historically high levels. Although there is some uncertainty regarding the reliability of this CPUE as an index of abundance for Barramundi, the trend is not indicative of a substantive decline in abundance of this species in recent years. Moreover, overall effort directed towards this species has declined, in part due to two commercial licenses being removed in 2013 from the Broome coast area of the fishery [Newman et al. 2022], along with closures to commercial gillnet fishing along the Pilbara coast and Eighty-mile beach areas in the mid-2000s. This large area of the NCNER is now only exposed to recreational, charter, and indigenous fishing.
Catch levels of Barramundi across the NCNER over the last 10 years (2013–22) have ranged from 42.7–78.9 t, with a mean annual catch of 60.2 t, with the latter value slightly higher than the average catch for the previous 10 years at 55.4 t. Barramundi are mostly caught by commercial fishing, with the recreational and charter component of the total catch averaging approximately16% in the past 10 years. The Catch-MSY model applied to annual catch data for Barramundi since 1976, indicate that catches since the mid-1990s remained at or below the mean predicted value for maximum sustainable yield (MSY). This is consistent with the predicted values for biomass in recent years being slightly above BMSY, and fishing mortality remaining below FMSY. However, it is important to recognise that Catch-MSY is a data-limited technique with relatively strong assumptions, dependent on user inputs. For this assessment, these included specified ranges for initial depletion (0.4–0.8, based on assumed catch pre-1976), final depletion (0.15–0.7, calculated by the program based on recent catches relative to maximum recorded annual catch) and low resilience (r=0.1–0.6, noting that this species has a longevity of >30 years). The above evidence indicates that the biomass of this stock is unlikely to be depleted and recruitment is unlikely to be impaired. Furthermore, the current level of fishing mortality is unlikely to be sufficiently high to cause the stock to become recruitment overfished.
On the basis of the evidence provided above, Barramundi in Western Australia is classified as a sustainable stock.
Biology
Barramundi biology [Davis 1982; Roberts et al. 2021; Budd et al. 2022]
Species | Longevity / Maximum Size | Maturity (50 per cent) |
---|---|---|
Barramundi | 35 years, 1,500 mm TL |
Maturity (50%) Northern Territory: Males 2–5 years, 730 mm TL Females 5–7 years, 910 mm TL. Queensland: Males 2–5 years, 640 mm TL, Females 5–10 years, 770–920 mm TL. Western Australia: Females 7 years, 930 mm. |
Tables
Western Australia | |
---|---|
Commercial | |
Gillnet | |
Indigenous | |
Spearfishing | |
Hook and Line | |
Unspecified | |
Handline | |
Recreational | |
Spearfishing | |
Hook and Line | |
Handline | |
Charter | |
Hook and Line | |
Handline |
Method | Western Australia |
---|---|
Charter | |
Bag limits | |
Limited entry | |
Passenger restrictions | |
Possession limit | |
Size limit | |
Spatial closures | |
Spatial zoning | |
Commercial | |
Gear restrictions | |
Limited entry | |
Seasonal closures | |
Size limit | |
Spatial closures | |
Spatial zoning | |
Vessel restrictions | |
Indigenous | |
Laws of general application | |
Recreational | |
Bag limits | |
Gear restrictions | |
Licence | |
Licence (Recreational Fishing from Boat License) | |
Possession limit | |
Size limit | |
Spatial closures |
Western Australia | |
---|---|
Commercial | 48.97t |
Charter | 4.58 t |
Indigenous | Unknown |
Recreational | 5.81 t ± 1.77 se |
Western Australia – Recreational (catch). Boat-based recreational catch between 1 September 2020 and 31 August 2021 from Ryan et al. [2022]. Please note that catches of Barramundi are underestimates as shore-based and boat-based fishers that only operated in freshwater were out of scope of the survey.
Western Australia – Recreational (management methods). A Recreational Fishing from Boat Licence is required for the use of a powered boat to fish or to transport catch or fishing gear to or from a land-based fishing location.
Western Australia – Indigenous (management methods). Subject to application of Section 211 of the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth), and the exemption from a requirement to hold a recreational fishing licence, the non-commercial take by Indigenous fishers is covered by the same arrangements as that for recreational fishing.
Northern Territory - Indigenous (management methods). The Fisheries Act 1988 (NT), specifies that: “Unless expressly provided otherwise, nothing in this Act derogates or limits the right of Aboriginal people who have traditionally used the resources of an area of land or water in a traditional manner to continue to use those resources in that area in that manner.”
Northern Territory – Charter (management methods). In the Northern Territory, charter operators are regulated through the same management methods as the recreational sector, but are subject to additional limits on licence and passenger numbers.
Queensland – Indigenous (management methods). For more information see https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries/traditional-fishing
Queensland – Recreational Fishing (Catch). Data are based at the whole of Queensland level and derived from statewide recreational fishing surveys. Where possible, estimates have been converted to weight (tonnes) using best known conversion multipliers. Conversion factors may display regional or temporal variability. In the absence of an adequate conversion factor, data presented as number of fish.
Queensland – Commercial (Catch). Queensland commercial and charter data has been sourced from the commercial fisheries logbook program. Further information available through the Queensland Fisheries Summary Report https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries/monitoring-research/data/queensland-fisheries-summary-report
Queensland – Commercial (Management Methods). Harvest strategies are available at: https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/business-priorities/fisheries/sustainable/harvest-strategy
References
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