One Mullet Net & It's All Over

[Slider]

Teewah Beach has actually produced a few fish this year. Good whiting have been relatively plentiful, bream and tarwhine in numbers not seen for 10 to 15 years and there have even been a few chopper tailor making occasional appearances as well as a 4kg fish taken Saturday morning in front of Teewah. While the average tailor and bream size is much smaller than in the past, it is pleasing to see that they can still be caught at all here after a very lean 5 to 10 years. Teewah locals have started fishing again and there has been a lot more anglers on the beach because there are fish here again.


Well, there were that is until Sunday morning when a small haul of a tonne or 2 of mullet and some tailor taken in nets south of Teewah shut everything down again. The bream that were being caught from every gutter south of Teewah on Saturday were not caught at all on Sunday. The choppers that we could spin up from each rocky gutter on Saturday obviously went with the bream as did the tarwhine, dart and whiting. Only flathead were being caught south of Teewah on Sunday but the northern end of the beach from about 10kms north of Teewah was still producing some fish. This will, or has changed as the netters were last seen (yesterday afternoon) heading north to where they know they haven't as yet spooked all the fish.


The same thing happened in early June when the first run of mullet were netted at the mouth of the Noosa and in the Double Island Point lagoon. At that time, longtail and mac tuna, school mackerel, tailor and dart were feeding close to shore on shoals of bait with terns and gannets in attendance. Bream, tarwhine and whiting up to 50cm were being taken by recs all along the beach. The nets were shot and all surface action immediately ceased and never did start again. The bread and butters disappeared and the only thing left were the first of the migrating humpbacks and a few flathead. It took several weeks for fish to return and as soon as they did, a net is shot and the process repeats - again and again as it does every year.


So for those wondering why there is such a push by the rec sector for net free regions, this is just one of the very good reasons why they are necessary. It is not just here that the nets are spooking the fish and ruining recreational prospects, it is anywhere that nets are used and fish everywhere are being scared away from the feeding and spawning grounds that sustain their species. The repercussions extend to dolphins, sharks and all seabirds and are serious. Oh, and it should be mentioned that in every location around the world where net free areas have been established, the commercial fishery statistics improve. There is more fish supplied to local markets than there was previously and the commercial fishers make more money. NSW has the proof - 300 licenses bought by Gov, 30 net free areas declared and the commercial catch increased. Seems counterintuitive, but is actually quite logical that this should happen if one understands fish behaviour around commercial nets.

[Still_Dreamin]

Well said.

[Noelm]

not too sure about the logic with the commercial catch increase thing... you think this is good?

[chris69]

Theres a heap a netters on the southen end of bribie beach the other day people fishing not far from them catching fish go figure that one out , must be a teewah thing.

[rando]

I videoed a crew shooting a net on kirra in front of the surf club thursday night.
the first time Ive seen an actual shot .
Ive seen a truck load of fish in tubs on Staddie ,but never seen a net shot and retrieved.
They waited a long time to shoot, and I waited there to see the result all the time thinking. I cant see where the fish are. So i was quite interested to see the result.
Doughnut!!!
Also the net did not look right coming in, all tangled up to my eyes. But as ive said ive not seen it done before except on tv.
I think it was a small mesh net so they might have been after pillies.
I will post it if i can work out how ,,,i think it is probably 20 minutes of film.

[JEWIENEWIE]

I think what slider was saying by that comment Noelm was that by reducing the amount or banning netting in certain ares in turn has shown to increase fish numbers in others which again in turn has given fewer licence holders bigger catches.::) I think, :-? although it is early saturday morning and i am feeling a little dusty
JN

[Slider]

More or less sums it up Jewie. The more and larger fish that result from net free areas produce more and stronger larvae that spillover and mature in netted areas. NFA adults also move across boundaries into netted areas in their normal foraging and breeding activities. At the same time, rec anglers fishing in the NFAs are catching more and bigger fish, tackle shops are selling more bait and tackle, boat bldrs are building more boats .....


Chris, I'd need to know more about the situation that day at Bribie before I can draw any conclusions. Nets spooking fish is certainly not a Teewah thing - it happens everywhere, but there are a few variables that can alter how fish of different species will react to nets in a given circumstance.
The size of the haul and species composition is one variable - a very small haul has lesser effect than a large haul.
Species that are in the net and emitting alarm signals will elicit stronger responses from the same species outside the net.
The age and experience of fish (exposure to nets) is also relevant - older fish and pelagics react faster and stronger than younger and more sedentary fish like smaller bream who are more likely to hide amongst structure than flee in the general direction of the migration that is being undertaken by a pelagic. If there is a lot of food present for the fish, they are hungry and the haul isn't large, then fish do assess risk and can choose to stay and feed (or spawn) rather than leave.
Fish will feed in the presence of predators, or a net which is a predator. One of the best tailor sessions I had when I was a kid was when we found a school of 8lb fish being herded to the shore by a school of very large yellow-tailed kingies. The tailor were balled up like bait, but they'd hit a pilchard as soon as it hit the water above them while the kingies were carving into their mates.
The other consideration is that the netting effect is cumulative. The first net shot for the season, depending on haul size, will have an influence, but lesser than the 2nd shot, also depending on size. By the end of July in most mullet hauling locations, there isn't much left other than flathead and fish smaller than the mesh size .... remembering that the mullet come out of the estuaries to spawn and have no knowledge of previous hauls along the open beaches and therefore provide the bulk of catches in July in particular (FQ catch data). The fish that have moved away from a netted area will seek safe havens where they can still survive, but which are likely to be less optimal than the locations where they have historically aggregated to feed and spawn and which originally caused the establishment of the commercial aggregation fishery arrangements that still exist in Qld today.

I have watched fish flee and hide from nets on Teewah Beach a heap of times. But I have also seen the same behaviour from fish in relation to nets at Rainbow, Sandy Cape, North Point, Noosa river and Lake Cootharaba. I also have 1st hand accounts of the same phenomenon of apparent spooking by nets by commercial, charter and experienced rec operators in northern & central NSW, Hervey Bay, Bribie & Moreton Is, Weipa, Yeppoon & Keppels, Gladstone, Cooktown, Margaret Rvr, Cairns, Ethiopia, Mediterranean, Fiji, .... are the ones that spring to mind. The fish behaviour can be described as a fast skitterish swim like when a fish is caught and released, but can involve entire schools of thousands of fish all swimming in one direction - away from the net. I've driven 20 kms along Teewah Beach - in the direction from which skitterish fish are coming from to find the net with fish on the beach which I knew had to be there because of the fish behaviour I was observing. On Sunday morning it was only about 4 or 5kms but I knew there was a net between me, 3kms north of 3rd cut, and the river mouth and sure enough there was, but with only a very small haul. It was another 2 small hauls of mullet and tailor as they fled north before everything shut down altogether, including small bream and further north than after the 1st haul alone.

[samson]

Mate it's not just nets recreational fleet are more responsible for spooking fish in many situations than netters especially offshore on pelagic fish i regually get good hauls of fish literally meters from the netters all mullet season at Kirra before during and after shots are taken.I'm talking a lot of fish to pigeon hole this group based on your own personal opinions are a bit one eyed to me if you think banning these guys based on your opinions through your limited lack of knowledge of fish your gonna have to include the vast recreational fleet that out fishes the commercial tonnage of all varieties bar mullet because they are way more responsible in my eyes but hey I only fish about 200 days a year at sea I don't think I'm qualified do judge anybody yet you must be more qualified than most I guess to warrant wrecking people's livelihoods.

[airlock]

TBH I'm confused that this is still an issue worth arguing over. Large quantities of anything taken from anywhere greatly upsets the local eco-system, rip the bait fish out of the water without providing any replacement and all the fish that feed on them are going else where or expiring. Take spawning fish and numbers will drop, do this repeatedly and unsustainably and numbers will quickly drop off, and off course its not just the common place mullet as bi-catch in nets is an unavoidable issue. finally fish use scent and electrical signals to communicate and sense whats happening around them, a large number of panicking fish will spook the majority of other fish around them and they won't be in a hurry to return.

My general opinion is that the tourism and rec fishing dollar is much more the the money gained of pro-netters, unfortunately the two are often mutually exclusive with the former being at least reasonably sustainable assuming everyone sticks to size and possession limits. and of course every one knows fresh/live local caught bait beats the hell outa that tweed crap thats been in the bottom of the freezer for weeks.

[samson]

The problem is that rec fishing is proving to not be sustainable,there is just too much latent effort if it was sustainable I wouldn't be typing on my computer right now, if it was most recs wouldn't be looking at commercials to point the finger at either yet mullet netting time and time again has proven to be sustainable.

[sunnycoastfisho]

I think taking the mullet purely for their roe is pretty poor what a waste.

[samson]

Have you ever been to markwells every part is utilized more so than any other fish caught by recs and commercials alike.

[Rainbowrunner]

Im keen for a rec fishing license which includes freshwater and saltwater where the proceeds are used to buy out the pros.
lived in Botany bay area before and after all of the pros were bought out and fished St Georges basin where the same has been done and they are now 2 of the best rec fishing areas in NSW by far, the fishing improved by a huge margin in my experience

Imagine Moreton bay with no professional nets, trawlers or crabbers, that id love to see

[chris69]

There banned mackerel netting in hervey bay a long time ago weres all the mackerel now?????????

[Slider]

Who[s livelihoods are wrecked Samson when our unsustainable fishing practises prove to be that? Could be yours.

Yes, all of the mullet is used - for trap bait, fishing bait, Coles and Woolies via Sydney, the roe to Asia where they are now farming mullet and it is not uncommon for mullet, or tailor, or dart that is left uniced for too long or is crushed in the net as tailor regularly is, to be turned into fertiliser. Invasive species should be going to fertiliser, not native species and if the catch can't be managed better so that these fish can be supplied to the non-fishing public like the commercial sector state, then the catch should be stopped.
Our 'locally' caught mullet, tailor, bream, goldens etc disappears on a Markwells truck to Tweed where it is processed and distributed .... back to Noosa apparently if we are to believe the commercial sector. These mullet and other species should be a source of fresh and inexpensive seafood that is supplied fresh to the local market and the lesser quality product as bait.


Chris, the 2004 state wide ban on netting of spotted and Spanish mackerel, other than bycatch of around 10 tonne of spotties and not sure on Spanish, has seen a very notable recovery in Spanish numbers in particular. The state wide catch data for spotties is stable ... that's both line and net and I'd take that as not being a failure and probably a success given spotty numbers were disappearing fast ... thus the measure.

[Da-Jew-Man]

Here's something interesting.
Was at Southbank today for the Food Festival.
The Commercial Fisherman Of Moreton Bay had a stand selling Mullet (Fried) , $ 5 to the general public.
Was asked to sign a petition against the limiting of netting in the bay. Refused .
The public were signing the petition.
Do they really know enough about netting and the new proposals to sign this.
To me was just a way of getting a lot of signatures.

[samson]

Mate I know the guys that run markwells and guys that worked there regularly over the years and the times that fish aren't utilized are very rare, I myself eat the fish you are talking about that's been trucked down from noosa and its quite good quality even when I buy my bait from these guys which is around 500 kg a year the quality is good and edible.
The quality control at the work place is second to none as far as looking after product and hygiene,the local public get there share if bait,food is needed no one misses out it is shared through the public like local tap water even the heads are sold to tweed bait only things left are back bones and they get snapped up by locals also.
As far as spotty mackeral its been no worse or better since the ring net closures and the Spanish have nothing to do with the net fishery,the seasonal mackeral runs fluctuate like they always have based on water temp and food source dictating which locations get the better runs of fish just like it always has for years and years nothing changed other than Spanish which is considered to be losing its overall average size based on research which could be a concern.
The major concern is the massive increase in recreational latent effort that is making the commercial take look abysmal and is often wasted and greederly frozen and stockpiled not cut up fresh and distributed to the public like a public resource should be.
As far as the public being duked into signing petitions thats gold considering I couldn't get onto ausfish the other day without being directed to a fisheries review to get uneducated fisherman to oppose netting in the same way gotta laugh at least they got a feed.

[Slider]

Well it's nice to know that Tweed locals are getting the most out of Noosafish while Noosa locals are eating muddy lake Weyba mullet. Also nice to know that edible and inexpensive mullet is being used for bait while the commercial sector cries about cheap imports that they can't compete with.

"Aren't utilised" - I take this to mean that they are binned as it seems that even when the whole fish goes to fertiliser, it is being 'utilised' .... but perhaps not in the fashion that the general public expect their wild caught native fish to be utilised. We discovered the use of such terms by the commercial sector when 30 tonne of Noosa mullet were left on the beach for 12 hours last year. Markwells bought the entire catch but they seemed to avoid pointing out exactly what they were used for and there can be little doubt about the eating quality. Then there was the 5 tonne at Stockton this year that were in the sun for 5 hours. These are 2 cases that the media managed to find out about, but we know that there is waste with every large haul because of the crushing in the net. Then there's the half an industrial bin of dart we found in 2013, the tonne of pilchards that the netter thought were tailor at Double Island Point last year and were left on the beach. Bronwyn Bishop would have a seizure if she knew what was happening in the mullet haul industry.

The massive increase in recreational latent effort? Probably brought about by the fact that they're all finding it harder to catch a feed. The recreational effort on the other hand is controlled by bag and size limits as well as green zones/marine parks and in the absence of nets has been found to allow the recovery of fish number and size. Seems like you have a problem with recs catching their own fish and eating them themselves ... as they are surely entitled to do, given that it is a public resource as you say. At the end of the day, as has been extensively studied all around the world and in every state of Aus, the recs ultimately pay more per kg of fish than if they bought it from a pro and this money sustains an industry many times the size of the commercial sector.


If we are going to net mullet, then we need to go about it a whole lot better than we are currently. This means utilising the catch in a manner that meets the expectations of the Australian public and has minimal detrimental effect on other species and industries.

[rayken1938]

"Bronwyn Bishop would have a seizure if she knew what was happening in the mullet haul industry."
Why didnt someone tell her so she could have chartered a chopper .
Cheers
Ray

[Funchy]

"Bronwyn Bishop would have a seizure if she knew what was happening in the mullet haul industry."
Why didnt someone tell her so she could have chartered a chopper .
Cheers
Ray

No choppers about at the moment Rayken, netters spooked em all :P

[samson]

Nice unsubstantiated facts there slider you actually believe what other people say that's what they call in the law hearsay doesn't hold any weight at all bud just rumours there your facts right good work you've been busy, the rec bags your talking about far out way what a lot of commercials can take of a lot of species by a mile and the wastage is phornominal not uncommon too see recs killing fish and throwing them back or a high percentage selling there catch all fact and seen with my eyes and fisheries officers.
The funny thing is slider I don't like netting one bit and agree with some things but if your gonna be one eyed and ban a sustainable fishery that's operated for millennium your gonna have to ban recs as well because unless you've had the blinders on all your life you'll notice that most rec fishery species are stuffed and it ain't the commercials fault the sooner you wake up to yourself and put your efforts where it's needed it's only gonna get worse and no rec licence and green zones and bag limits are gonna help one iota.

[Slider]

So if you see it, it's substantiated. But if I see it, then it's hearsay?

If bag limits are too generous and the commercial sector can demonstrate this, somehow, then the commercial sector should be making overtures to FQ on the matter. But again this curious situation keeps surfacing of fish recovering in size and number in any location where nets are removed and recreational fishing allowed .... under the existing laws. How can this possibly occur if it was water quality, habitat loss or rec pressure that caused the depletion that the fish recovered from?

Just for the record - it is not my ambition to shut down the mullet industry. On the contrary, I also believe that they can be sustainably fished for a long time to come and should be and I have consistently expressed this opinion over the years incl on Ausfish. But there are better ways of harvesting that minimise wastage and the impact on other species and industries and that is where I am coming from.

Also just for the record - for about a 12 year period between 1995 & 2007, I would have been on the beach fishing for an absolute minimum of 200 days a year. Prior to that it was only most weekends and holidays from age 3 (1971). Where I live requires driving along the beach (Teewah Beach) to get to and from home which adds further to observation opportunities. Or sometimes I'd take a run or walk up to 20kms along the beach looking for fish - I'm as skilled as a pro at spotting schools .... or not, as has been the case since about 2007/08. I too have had the chance to observe a few things, as have many recs who are far from clueless when it comes to understanding what's occurring in Qld's fisheries.

Samson, we all know there are bad eggs in both sectors who are selling their catch illegally, netting illegally blowing bag limits etc. The only remedy for that is policing.

[samson]

Seen enough with my eyes to get four ausfish members prosecuted for illegal fishing and there's some of the most respected guys on this site doing the same that if they don't pull their heads in will encounter the same, if you say you see a lot put your efforts to better uses and stamp out the real threats and stop worrying about spooked fish this is just part of every fishery which is getting less and less in the commercial sector and more and more in rec side but you don't see the commercial publicly trying to ban recreationals,as I've said I don't like netting but agree with probably the only form your against but with net buy backs the way there going there extinct very soon but a lot of people will suffer for it.

[Slider]

There is absolutely no evidence that net free areas reduce the supply of seafood and if there was the commercial sector would be going hell for leather with it. The only evidence available points to an improved supply of seafood by commercials. I recently went through with a fine tooth comb, a document titled "A socio- economic evaluation of the commercial fishing industry in the Ballina, Clarence and Coffs Harbour regions" which was commissioned for the commercial sector. In this document, the catch data is shown to be stable from before implementation of RFHs until 2009 - despite there being net free areas and a substantial buy out. While the doc states that the commercial sector would be opposed to any more RFHs, there is no mention of RFHs having impacted on yields ... which you would think would be hammered if there was even an inkling that they might have.
I also recently compiled charts of commercial catch data for the Hinchinbrook channel where 3 net free areas were declared in '99 for dugong protection. By far and away the healthiest looking fishery of the many fishery grids in Qld that I've charted with particular improvement following '99 with increasing cpue and yields and declining effort - just as you want a chart to look. None of the other charts I've built look like that and have increasing effort, reducing cpue and yields all over the shop.

[Noelm]

wouldn't the catch rate be stable simply because of quotas? makes little difference if 20 people catch (say) 2 tonnes each or 2 people catch 20 tonnes each, same "stable" data is the end result.

[Slider]

Importantly, the data isn't going down. And that is the entire argument that the commercial sector is putting forward as to why NFAs should be opposed by the general public - that there "won't be fresh seafood to supply to the local markets which will open the door to cheap and inferior quality imports". just don't let the general public know that the assertion has no basis in fact.

But you are right Noelm - less fishers catch the same quota or total annual yield and make more money .... and have certainty that the fishery will keep producing because there are NFAs . The recs are happy and have stopped pestering Gov and affected native wildlife like seabirds, turtles, dugong, manta/eagle ray and dolphins have a more secure future.

[Slider]

The attached pdf is graphs of commercial catch data for the 4 commercial fishery grids, inclusive of the 3 dugong protected or net free areas at Hinchinbrook. Speak for themselves really.