Catch, Effort and CPUE

Longsnout Boarfish catches in Tasmanian waters are primarily derived from gillnet; however, some by-product catch was recorded from the shark net fishery on the northeast coast in the last two years, for the first time since 2011/12 (Figure below). Catches have been declining from peaks of approximately 10 tonnes (recorded in 1996/97) but appear to have stabilised at low levels since 2013/14, with a total catch of 1.1 t recorded in 2020/21 (Figure below). Longsnout Boarfish from gillnet fishing were taken exclusively from the east and southeast coasts in 2020/21. This represents a contraction from previous seasons during which this species was taken from waters around the state, albeit with minimal catch and effort on the west coast, and a long standing focus on the east and southeast coasts.

Longsnout Boarfish are not caught by rod and line and no recreational catch estimates are available for gillnet for this species. However, about 1000 individuals were recorded (both kept and released) in the 2012/13 recreational fishing survey (Lyle et al. 2014b), which indicates that Longsnout Boarfish are not a common recreational species.

Following a peak in 2008/09, commercial gillnetting effort declined and has since remained below or close to effort levels from the reference year (Figure above). CPUE also shows a general declining trend, with notable annual fluctuation (Figure above).