Bumper Snapper Guardians 2023 kicks off ‘super-stocking’ week

What an awesome turn-out for Snapper Guardians 2023 – with the biggest crowd in the event’s history coming down to help us release juvenile pink snapper into Cockburn Sound!  

What’s more it kicked off a ‘super-stocking’ week which has seen 40,000 juvenile pink snapper and 15,000 yellowtail king fish released into metro waters in less than seven days!  

With COVID unfortunately disrupting the community attendance at the event in 2021 and 2022, Recfishwest was delighted to see hundreds of fishing families turn up to roll up their sleeves and help release 5,000 juvenile pinkies to show how much they value this iconic species, the Sound and the fantastic fishing experiences it supports on Perth’s doorstep.  

A big Recfishwest thanks to the 400+ attendees that helped us release 5,000 juvenile pink snapper into Cockburn Sound for Snapper Guardians 2023!

CHECK OUT OUR LIVE FACEBOOK FEED FROM THIS YEAR’S SNAPPER GUARDIANS

This was followed by another 35,000 pink snapper released between Fremantle Sailing Club and the Cockburn Power Boats Club earlier this week, while 15,000 yellowtail kingfish were also released on Wedneday between the same locations to spice up future fishing experiences in metro waters.  

“The fantastic response we had to Snapper Guardians 2023 shows the community’s care and passion for Cockburn Sound and the fantastic, safe, accessible fishery it supports is stronger than ever before,” said CEO Dr Andrew Rowland. “A big shout out to everyone who came down from the community to support this year’s event.” 

“Fishing is always better when the fish are biting and we don’t just want to see sustainable fisheries – we want abundant ones. That’s why it’s great to see the Government’s commitment to fish stocking initiatives like the pink snapper and yellowtail kingfish programs. 

Check out the behind-the-scenes footage from the DPIRD Fremantle hatchery and the kingie cannon firing new yellowtail kingfish into their new home on the YouTube link below! 

“We want to see more of this in the future and a well-developed scientific monitoring program that can give us a better understanding of the effectiveness and potential scalability of these popular iniativies,” added Andrew.  

A big Recfishwest shout out also to the team from DPIRD’s Fremantle hatchery, who collected the pink snapper eggs in early November of 2022, hatched and reared the pinkies in their aquaculture tanks through the most vulnerable stage of their lives, before transporting the 90-day-old fish down to Jervoise Bay, Woodman Point for release into their new home.  

The team at DPIRD’s Fremantle hatchery collected the pink snapper eggs back in November of 2022, hatched and reared them until they reached 90-days-of-age and transported 5,000 down to Cockburn Sound for release during Snapper Guardians!

We would also like to thank our community fish stocking partners Daiwa, for helping us make this event possible.  

Rest assured, with the State Government promising more funding and support for future stocking events such as Snapper Guardians, we will ensure this great event continues for many years to come and becomes even bigger and better.  

Were you one of the Snapper Guardians who rolled up your sleeves over the weekend? Check out some of the action and big smiles from our latest event below and thank you to all attendees who put on the bathers and snorkels to help make the 2023 Snapper Guardians event one for the ages.  

Continue Reading

September 29, 2023

Environment Minister acknowledges “critical” importance of seagrass meadows to marine life in Cockburn Sound

Recfishwest was pleased to hear Environment Minister Reece Whitby talk up the importance of Cockburn Sound and its seagrass habitat at a recent partnership agreement signing between Cockburn Power Boats Club (CPBC…

Read More

September 29, 2023

Esperance land-based comp shows exactly why fishing access must be maintained on the south coast

If you want a perfect example of why land-based fishing access and experiences need to be protected on the south coast – then the recent Esperance Land Based Fishing Club‘s Open Classic competition rang the…

Read More

September 27, 2023

Booming barra fishery in the East Kimberley draws biggest ever WA fishing competition

Barramundi mania took hold in Kununurra this past weekend with 1,125 anglers entering the East Kimberley town’s 25th annual Apex Barra Bash making it the biggest fishing tournament in WA history. It is the first…

Read More

September 21, 2023

Recfishwest at the 2023 Perth Boat Show – the views, the issues and the most colourful lure designs you’ll ever see!

Recfishwest got the chance to catch up with hundreds of mad keen recfishers on the weekend (15-17 September) at the Perth Boat Show.  Our stand at the heart of the show’s fishing section was a hive of…

Read More

September 14, 2023

Greenlip abalone closure – necessary, but disappointing and avoidable

DPIRD has advised that from 1 October 2023, fishing will not be permitted for greenlip abalone between Busselton Jetty and Shoal Cape in the Stokes National Park, west of Esperance. In addition: These changes are…

Read More

September 07, 2023

Anglers donate big mack sample haul at Onslow Mack10k!

With 78 boats brimming with 266 competitors all hoping to catch the biggest Spanish mackerel at the recent MACK10K competition in Onslow – our Fishing for Science table was jam-packed with macks!   The annual…

Read More