Targeting sustainable fish

I saw on a fishing show recently that Mulloway are a short lived species (up to 5 years) and maturing to a breeding age quickly making them a very sustainable fish compared to lots of our local bottom dwellers. It got me thinking that it would obviously be better targeting the likes of them and other 'sustainable' fish and not so much the poor old Pink Snapper and Dhuies that lives for 30+ years.

So I thought it might be an idea for some of the guys on the forum to post up some tips and techniques for targeting such species for some of the lesser experienced fishers like myself. I mostly fish from the boat and really only target demersals as thats all I know, I wouldn't have a clue how to specificaly target Mulloway.

Anybody care to set the ball rolling???

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flexn's picture

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http://www.westernangler.com.

Wed, 2014-09-10 18:15

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yeah mate that doesn't sound

Wed, 2014-09-10 18:41

yeah mate that doesn't sound right, Im sure Mulloway live for a lot longer than 5 years.

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Also mate I think your idea

Wed, 2014-09-10 18:47

Also mate I think your idea of targeting species that live a long time might not be the way to go. A fish that lives a long time will probably take a long time to reach maturity and breeding, so it is more vulnerable to over fishing as opposed to a species that grows quickly and is likely to mature quickly as well. The fisheries have already taken all these things into account with their bag limits.
As for information on catching mulloway, heaps of good stuff on this site that you can access by using the search function. Hope to see a photo of your first Mulloway soon !

mrwinta's picture

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 I think you might have miss

Wed, 2014-09-10 19:19

 I think you might have miss understood me- my intension was more to encourage people to fish for shorted lived species and species that are in larger numbers to take the pressure off the more vunrable fish. Not necissarily just Mulloway. I must have got it wrong about the Mulloway being in that catagory.

Thanks though I hope to bag one one day...

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mrwinta's picture

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 Ok so I was way off with the

Wed, 2014-09-10 19:28

 Ok so I was way off with the Mulloway being short lived- I have tried to find the show I saw that  on but with no success.... 

 

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 NEVER PUSH YOUR GRANNY WHEN SHE'S SHAVING

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Maybe it was mullet? Size is

Wed, 2014-09-10 21:23

Maybe it was mullet?

Size is a general rule- the smaller the max size, the shorter the lifespan and quicker the reproduction (though of course there are exceptions).

Most bread and butter species fall into this category, though there is some debate about herring stocks at the moment. Squid are probably the fastest growing and shortest lived thing you could target.

You can also try targeting pelagics as they tend to be less vulnerable. Summer is the best time (although JohnF is apparently a wizard with magical powers), when the water warms up and demersal ban gets closer you'll see a lot more posts regarding targeting pelagics.

Bodie's picture

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Maybe is was sambo's?

Thu, 2014-09-11 10:14

Maybe is was sambo's?

crasny1's picture

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Dollies

Thu, 2014-09-11 12:13

Mahi Mahi (dolphin fish, Dorado) are one offf the shortest living fish (4-5yrs) that reach sexual muturity early. The growth rate is phenomenal.

Extract from Wikipaedia:

Mahi-mahi are among the fastest-growing fish. They spawn in warm ocean currents throughout much of the year, and their young are commonly found in seaweed. Mahi-mahi are carnivorous, feeding on flying fish, crabs, squid, mackerel, and other forage fish. They have also been known to eat zooplankton and crustaceans.

Males and females are sexually mature in their first year, usually by 4–5 months old. Spawning can occur at body lengths of 20 cm. Females may spawn two to three times per year, and produce between 80,000 and 1,000,000 eggs per event.

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