The South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI) in partnership with the University of Tasmania are leading a research project to determine the participation, catch and effort of recreational fishers across the state. This project, co-funded by the South Australian Government and the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC) will gather information on recreational fishing activity through a traditional phone diary survey, which will be used to manage the sustainability of our fisheries.

An additional component of this research will be the evaluation of the use of a smart-phone application to collect recreational fishing catch estimates. The results of the traditional phone diary survey will be compared with those from the app-based survey to help researchers understand how apps can be used as a tool to estimate recreational fishing catch and effort. All recreational fishers are encouraged to participate by downloading the SA Fishing App and providing information about their fishing activity anytime they go fishing from 1 March 2021 to 28 February 2022. In addition, fishers may be approached at key fishing locations around South Australia to have their catch measured.

This survey will help assess the sustainability of SA’s fishing resources and will give fishery managers information they need to make sure there are healthy fish stocks into the future. The researchers will have no compliance role. They are not fisheries officers and will not be checking size, bag or boat limits. All data provided will be treated in the strictest confidence by the project team.

For more information please visit the Primary Industries and Regions website: Recreational Fishing Survey