There’s just one year left in the three-year State-wide fish aggregating devices (FADs) trial program, which has unlocked new sportfishing opportunities across WA from Broome to Albany. Continue reading “Reviewing the State-wide FADs trial program – two years on”
Tag: sportfishing
They’re coming! Get ready for the Awesome Autumn of Salmon 2021!
Last year, Recfishwest unfortunately had to cancel the 2020 Awesome Autumn of Salmon due to COVID-19 restrictions. Continue reading “They’re coming! Get ready for the Awesome Autumn of Salmon 2021!”
Christmas comes early for sportfishers with fantastic FADs going in the water
Sportfishers in the southern half of the State are celebrating an early Christmas present by heading out to fish aggregation devices (FADs) which have now been deployed off Perth, Rockingham, Albany — and for the first time, Geraldton! Continue reading “Christmas comes early for sportfishers with fantastic FADs going in the water”
New metro FADs are a go!
Six new FADs have been deployed off the Perth coast, marking off a huge milestone in establishing Recfishwest’s three-year State-wide FADs trial. And, after only three weeks in the water, they’re already producing great dolphinfish action! Continue reading “New metro FADs are a go!”
Metro FADs in position and ready for great sportfishing action this summer and autumn!
Recfishwest is pleased to announce all of the metro Fish Aggregating Devices (FADs) have now been deployed and are in position ready to fish providing great pelagic sportfishing options for this summer and autumn.
This means there are now eight more FADs deployed in the metro region in addition to the six existing Perth Game Fishing Club (PGFC) devices west of Rottnest.
CHECK OUT ALL THE METRO FADS LOCATIONS HERE
The latest deployment includes six devices approximately 30 nautical miles off the metro coast from between Rottnest and Two Rocks in water depths of between 130-350m.
In addition, the Mangles Bay Fishing Club FAD and Compleat Angler Rockingham FAD are now in position and ready for action.
As we recently reported following the Cape Naturaliste FADs deployment in January, we’ve been working hard since late December to get the metro devices out ever since the State Government finally committed to fund a fully established State-wide FADs program going forward.
Read Fisheries Minister Don Punch’s FADs program launch media release here
Of course, we would have liked to have been in a position to deploy the metro FADs sooner, but from all reports from keen FADs anglers like Tackle West’s Luke Ryan, action on the PGFC FADs has just started to heat up – check out his recent video of an epic dolphin fishing session on the YouTube link below!
Recfishwest CEO Dr Andrew Rowland said, “We’re really pleased we’ve been able to deploy FADs in the metro in time for late summer and autumn – we know from the wealth of positive feedback we received from the three-year pilot program we ran how popular these devices are with metro-based fishers.
“The metro devices are a key component for State-wide FADs program which we now have an ongoing funding commitment from the State Government to support, which is a first for WA.
“The FADs provide a great sport-fishing option for fast-growing abundant pelagic fish and we want to work with the Government to develop more new sustainable fishing opportunities like these that can spread fishing effort and provide real value to the WA fishing community.”
FADs are still planned for Albany and Geraldton and for the first time off Mandurah and Jurien Bay.
Recfishwest is also in talks with the Government over the FAD program rollout for the northern parts of the State.
We will continue to work hard to get the remaining FADs in the water at all locations – stay tuned to all our channels for updates.
FANCY GIVING THE FADS A GO? Check out our How to fish the FADs guide here
Extreme sportfish catches recorded at GAMEX 2023
With 237 tag-and-released billfish, including 161 black marlin, 68 sailfish and two pending State and national queenfish and spangled emperor records — the 55th GAMEX fishing tournament once again lived up to its reputation as one of the premier fishing competitions in Australia!
A healthy contingent of 245 avid competitors on 58 boats flocked to Exmouth from across the State between 17-25 March, with Recfishwest researchers also in attendance to collect vital species data for our Fishing for Science program and to coordinate a fishing clinic for dozens of excited kids.
A smorgasbord of point-scoring species were weighed in across the comp, including Spanish mackerel, shark mackerel, school mackerel, queenfish, golden trevally, cobia, dolphinfish, yellowfin tuna, striped tuna, wahoo, barracuda and spangled emperor.
From these captures are two pending records, both from the same angler in Luke Mounsey, who landed a 5.16kg queenfish on 4kg line — a pending Western Australian Male Small Fry record — and a 2.24kg spangled emperor on 1kg line — a pending National Male Small Fry record.
Not only does GAMEX produce some of the best catches of any fishing tournament in the land — but it also had the most impressive booty of prizes up for grabs which included a $50,000 Northbank trailerboat package draw for one lucky competitor, fuelling fantastic fishing and fierce competition across the tournament.
The team aboard Fatal Attraction enjoyed a fantastic tournament, winning a range of categories including the Overall Capture/Tag & Release category with 11 species across 11 line classes landed, Matt Gates winning Champion Male Angler with nine species across 10 line classes, along with their crew member Dean Gates winning Champion Small Fry Angler.
Bri Bollard aboard Dickens Cider claimed the Champion Female Angler title for five species across eight line classes, with Jessica Hournhardt winning Champion Junior Angler (16yrs/U) of five species across eight line classes and Luke Mounsey winning Champion Small Fry Angler (11yrs/U) with three species across four line classes.
With over $1 million pumped into the Exmouth regional economy each year from GAMEX visitors thanks to the hard-fighting and abundant fish species on offer, it’s clear how important fishing tournaments like GAMEX are to regional towns across Western Australia.
Ben Knaggs, Club Manager of the Exmouth Game Fishing Club (EGFC), said it is the most highly anticipated fishing event on the calendar each year for Exmouth and it has been part of the fabric of the town for over half a century.
“GAMEX is a highly important milestone on the social calendar each year, particularly for mad-keen fishers. Economically, it has a huge part to play each year and it marks the start of the tourist season around Exmouth, which forms the foundations of the livelihoods of many businesses in the region,” said Ben.
“There is such a wide variety of species on offer during the competition and it showcases the fishing in Exmouth on a national and international perspective. It puts the spotlight on Exmouth as the world-class sportfishing destination it is.”
Thanks to the kind fishers who let Recfishwest Operations Officers Sam Russell and Levi De Boni sample their catches, they were able to collect data from loads of fish during the Exmouth Game Fishing Club-held (EGFC) comp.
Data collected included weight, length, condition, sex and maturity stage, while tissue samples from each fish’s belly were also taken for future research.
“Thanks again to the EGFC and its weigh-in committee for the help throughout this year’s GAMEX and for supporting Fishing for Science, along with all fishers who let us sample the fish that they caught – you’ve helped collect valuable data regarding important recreational species,” said Sam.
“Our fishing clinic was also a great success for the youngsters, we had dozens of kids landing some impressive catches that are highly abundant and easily accessible year-round from the Exmouth marina. This region is always rewarding when it comes to teaching kids about sustainability and catching fish.”
