The information in this chart indicates the total commercial catch recorded from the GBRMP in 2007 - split into retained and non-retained components. A list of non-retained species composition by gear type indicates that trawl and net gear both interact with a wider range of vulnerable species than does line or pot gear.

There are two important components of non-retained catch (bycatch): 1) the volume and/or the number of interactions with protected, vulnerable or threatened species, and 2) the survival success of many species that are caught and not retained is poorly understood, but some species can be significantly affected.

Trawl has an average 1:8 ratio of retained to non-retained catch. Risks to the majority of species has been assessed as low. In addition, significant work has gone into reducing the likelihood of interactions with vulnerable species in this fishery. Turtle excluder devices (TEDs) are now mandatory, with the result that incidence in drowning in trawl nets is now a rare event. Bycatch reduction devices (BRDs) used to reduce unwanted other catch are also mandatory and further development is likely to reduce the high non-retained catch rates over time.

Net gear is very size selective which results in a relatively low volume of non-retained catch, however it interacts significantly with a large range of vulnerable species. For some of these species, especially dugong and several sawfish species, population levels are so low that any additional deaths in fishing nets is a very significant threat.

 

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Citation and/or URL

Chart compiled from data in: 2007 Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries (DPI&F) Annual Status Reports: http://www.dpi.qld.gov.au/cps/rde/dpi/hs.xsl/28_10916_ENA_HTML.htm

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Source

2007 Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries (DPI&F) Annual Status Reports; DPI&F CFish database

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Spatial Coverage

Whole GBRMP 

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Temporal Coverage

2007

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Update Frequency

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Other Information