Trawl impacts and biodiversity management in Shark Bay, Western Australia
Mervi Kangas A C and Sue Morrison B
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Western Australian Fisheries and Marine Research Laboratories, PO Box 20, North Beach, WA 6920, Australia.
B Western Australian Museum, 49 Kew Street, Welshpool, WA 6106, Australia.
C Corresponding author. Email: Mervi.Kangas@fish.wa.gov.au
Marine and Freshwater Research 64(12) 1135-1155 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF12292
Submitted: 14 October 2012 Accepted: 11 May 2013 Published: 14 October 2013
Abstract
Trawl by-catch species composition and impact of trawling on soft bottom habitats was investigated in Shark Bay over four seasons. Spatial and temporal variability in faunal abundance and assemblages were investigated for sites with varied levels of trawl intensity, including areas permanently closed to trawling. Environmental conditions were found to be more important in determining differences in faunal assemblages between sites than trawl intensity. In total, 241 fish and 360 invertebrate species were recorded in Shark Bay during this study. The 20 most abundant fish species contributed to 80% of the total number of fish caught overall and these occurred at 73 to 100% of the sites sampled whilst the 20 most abundant invertebrate species contributed to 88% of the total number of invertebrates caught and these occurred at 62 to 100% of sites sampled. Depletion experiments during two time periods were undertaken to determine the catchability (vulnerability) of fish and invertebrate species within these assemblages to better understand trawl impacts. These results, combined with the spatial and temporal distribution patterns of individual species, indicate that long-term trawl impacts can be mitigated by restricting trawling within current trawl areas that constitute 20–40% of the fishery area and for daily monitoring of the trawl fleet with the Vessel Monitoring System for adherence to permanent, spatial and temporal closures.
Additional keywords: biodiversity indices, bycatch, otter trawl selectivity, prawn (shrimp) fishery, seasonal variability.
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