Rec fishos who assists WA’s Department of Fisheries with a major research project could be the lucky winners of a spectacular week-long charter fishing trip for two to the Montebello Islands.
Donated by Montebello Island Safaris, the prize, worth more than $5,000, will go to a lucky fisho who has donated fish skeletons and provided the relevant details of their catch – before June 2011.
The Department of Fisheries needs the filleted fish skeletons, or frames, with the heads and guts still intact, to help support research into key finfish species like Western Australian dhufish, tailor and herring.
The Montebello trip is the grand-prize available for donors in 2011, but other fishing tackle prizes, donated by members of the tackle industry, are also on offer.
Department of Fisheries Director of Research Dr Rick Fletcher said he was delighted to see fishing businesses getting behind the important initiative.
“Fish frames are vital to our research programs so we can manage our fish stocks sustainably ensuring there are fish for the future,” Fletcher said.
“It’s great that Montebello Island Safaris are supporting us in this as well as members of the tackle industry. On behalf of the Department, I thank them all for helping us in this work.”
Data gathered from fish frames can give a good indication of how sustainable or at risk key species are from fishing. The information is particularly important for research into the recovery of west coast demersal scalefish stocks, since new recreational fishing rules were brought in with dhufish, pink snapper and baldchin groper fish frames needed by the Department. Fish frames of nearshore species like tailor, whiting, garfish and herring are also being sought.
In order to qualify for the draw, recreational fishers need to bring their frames to a designated drop-off spot at either a Department of Fisheries office or a participating fishing tackle shop.
All frames donated must be labelled with details of who caught the fish, when, where and contact details to be eligible for entry into the draw. The more frames fishers donated the more chance they will have of winning the grand prize.
Details of drop-off points can be found on the Department of Fisheries website at www.fish.wa.gov.au and by clicking on the ‘Go Fishing For Science – Send Us Your Skeletons’ page or call 9203 0111.
