THREADFIN salmon and blue salmon are two of the best estuarine sportfishing targets in Australia’s north. Threadfin are also particularly good eating, up there with golden snapper. Sadly for rec fishos, they’re also fished commercially.
A joint team of WA, Queensland and NT scientists has now completed a study on the species’ stock structure and stock boundaries with the aim of reducing the potential for local stock depletions. The research concluded that blue salmon (blue threadfin) stay and breed within a very small area, in the order of tens of kilometres, while threadfin salmon (king threadfin) stocks are often separated by hundreds of kilometres.
Both species exhibit significant movement within the intertidal zones of their home ranges in response to tidal movements. Understanding that these fish have small, discrete stocks should be valuable in guiding fisheries managers on future strategies for sustainable management, according to the report, which is available from the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation’s website HERE.
