West Coast Rock Lobster Managed Fishery Presentation PDF

West Coast Rock Lobster Managed Fishery Emma-Jade Tuffley – Research Scientist, DPIRD About me BSc, Honours, Marine Science, UWA PhD - UWA & DPIRD Research Scientist – DPIRD Offshore crustacean fisheries Western rock lobster Deep sea crab Outline WRL Panulirus cygnu...

West Coast Rock Lobster Managed Fishery Emma-Jade Tuffley – Research Scientist, DPIRD About me BSc, Honours, Marine Science, UWA PhD - UWA & DPIRD Research Scientist – DPIRD Offshore crustacean fisheries Western rock lobster Deep sea crab Outline WRL Panulirus cygnus History of Western Rock Lobster Fishery Management shift: Input controls at MSY to output controls at MEY TEPS Sealions and Whales Fun projects Panulirus cygnus The western rock lobster - Panulirus cygnus Family Palinuridae - Spiny or Rock Lobster - not a “crayfish” Distribution: Northwest Cape - Albany Life Westcycle Cost Rock Lobster Managed Fishery West Coast Rock Lobster Managed Fishery WCRLMF – History Managed fishery 1897 – present 1963 limited entry TAE - Number of pots Input controlled until 2009/10 MSC 2000 Catch and Effort were high Catch ~ 11,000 Effort 10 million pot lifts Puerulus Settlement Monitoring Puerulus Settlement Monitoring Puerulus Settlement Monitoring - catch prediction Puerulus Settlement - “Recruitment failure” Recruitment Failure Response – Management changes Reduce the harvest rate – fishing effort 44% in 2008/09 73% in 2009/10 2010/11 – output control Total Allowable Catch (TAC) ITQs Result – reduced effort Fewer pot lifts Catch = Pot lifts = Less catch Greater catch/pot lift Result – reduced effort Fewer pot lifts Catch = Pot lifts = Less catch Greater catch/pot lift Result – reduced effort Fewer pot lifts Catch = Pot lifts = Less catch Greater catch/pot lift Increased biomass Result – reduced effort Fewer pot lifts $13 million 2008/09 Fishery Profit Less catch $49 million 2009/10 Greater catch/pot lift Increased biomass Increased profit Result – reduced effort Fewer pot lifts Less catch Greater catch/pot lift Increased biomass Increased profit Result – fishing closer to MEY MEY = 0.35 – 0.4 Not 0.7 - 0.8 2014 Harvest Strategy MEY new target Lower end Away from MSY of MEY MSY Other benefits Year round fishing Removal of some protections Result – fishing closer to MEY MEY = 0.35 – 0.4 Not 0.7 - 0.8 GVP 2014 Harvest Strategy MEY new target Away from MSY Lower end of MEY MSY Other benefits Year round fishing Removal of some Profit protections Caputi et al 2018 MEY & EBFM - Triple Bottom Line Defining success Considerations Ecological Economic Social Balancing act – opposing objectives MEY & EBFM - Triple Bottom Line Positive MEY > $$ Reduced catch = more biomass Less effort = less TEPS interactions Better work life balance & OHS Recreational fishers Negative Lower end of MEY Reduced employment Product for local market Loss of potential GVP Caputi et al 2018 Management today – Cautious fishers Very robust stock assessment models Highly sustainable stock Last 10 years TACC 6,000 - 6,600 t Despite models indicating > 8, 000 t would be sustainable Harvest rate ~ 30% Despite MEY suggesting 35 – 40 % Model https://lobsterapp.shinyapps.io/WRL_MEY/ Management Future Social licence Whales BOBs New harvest strategy MEY target 0.39 Puerulus monitoring Climate change TEPS – Sea Lions Pups drowning in pots > 4-5 drownings per season Shallows water (< 20m) & within 30km of colony SLEDS SLED A 95 – 100 % exclusion No impact on catch rates or mean CL SLED B 100% exclusion 14% reduction in catch rate (P>0.05) No impact on mean CL No drownings TEPS – Whales 7 ½ month season TEPS – Whales 7 ½ month season TEPS – Whales Last 9 ½ month season 7 ½ month season TEPS – Whales Last 10 ½ month season 9 ½ month season 7 ½ month season TEPS – Whales Last Year-round season 10 ½ month season 9 ½ month season 7 ½ month season TEPS – Whales Before: After: Unlimited rope Rope < 2 x water depth Surface rope permitted No surface rope Unlimited floats Max float rig 5 feet No max pull period Max 2 floats Pots pull < 7 days TEPS – Whales Gear modifications Last Year-round season 10 ½ month season 9 ½ month season 7 ½ month season TEPS – Whales TEPS – Whales 64% reduction (How et al. 2020) Gear modifications Last Year-round season 10 ½ month season 9 ½ month season 7 ½ month season TEPS – Whales 5 Year FRDC Whale Program Gear modifications Last Year-round season 10 ½ month season 9 ½ month season 7 ½ month season Abrolhos – lobster foraging behaviour Behaviour Biology Ecology - Website www.panuliruscygnus.org  Intersection of different expertise Fisheries science stock assessment Fisheries Biology Oceanography Science Economics Politics My experience Communication & management Managing fisheries is managing people  Campbell R, Holley D, Christianopolous D, Caputi N, Gales NG (2008) Mitigation of incidental mortality of Australian sea lions in the west coast rock lobster fishery. Endanger Species Res 5:345–358. Caputi N, de Lestang S, How J, Trinnie F, Fletcher W (rick) (2018) Ecosystem-based fisheries management (or ‘triple bottom line’) assessments of the western rock lobster resource: Is there an optimal target for fishing? Mar Policy 94:264–274. Caputi N, de Lestang S, Reid C, Hesp A, How J (2015) Maximum economic yield of the western rock lobster fishery of Western Australia after moving from effort to quota control. Mar Policy Thank you 51:452–464. De Lestang S, Caputi N, Melville-Smith R (2009) Using fine-scale catch predictions to examine spatial variation in growth and catchability of Panulirus cygnus along the west coast of Australia. N Z J Mar Freshwater Res 43:443–455. How JR, Mare WK, Coughran DK, Double MC, Lestang S (2021) Gear modifications reduced humpback whale entanglements in a commercial rock lobster fishery. Mar Mamm Sci 37:782–806. Reid C, Caputi N, de Lestang S, Stephenson P (2013) Assessing the effects of moving to maximum economic yield effort level in the western rock lobster fishery of Western Australia. Mar Policy 39:303–313.