Snapper stock
Species
- Snapper (Pagrus auratus)
Fish stock status
Although a species may be classified as sustainable under the Status of Australian Fish Stocks (SAFS) framework, this does not mean that the stock is meeting Queensland targets under the harvest strategy.
| Stock | 2023 | 2020 | 2018 | 2016 | 2014 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queensland | Depleted | Depleted | Depleted | Overfished | Overfished |
Stock assessment
Monitoring
The biological monitoring program collects data on length, sex and age of fish caught by commercial fishers in regions south of Swains reef.
Recreational fishing data is collected from regions north of the Swains reef through the boat ramp survey and Keen Angler Program.
The monitoring program began in 2006.
Monitoring area
In Queensland, snapper range from the New South Wales-Queensland border northwards to Proserpine.
Age
Snapper is a popular target species for both recreational and commercial fishers with recreational fishers accounting for almost 75% of the catch. Peak fishing season on offshore grounds occurs during the winter months but they can be caught all year round. Juvenile snapper (less than 1 year old) are found in protected waters like those of Moreton Bay.
Snapper is a long-lived species, with a slow growth rate that can vary considerably between individual fish. The age information collected in the monitoring program has been used to construct an age-at-length graph for snapper. For example a 65cm snapper is likely to be nine years old but it could easily range from 5 to 13.
Snapper become sexually mature at 2 to 3 years of age so will potentially spawn for several years before they are caught.
The 3 oldest snapper aged in the monitoring program so far were caught in 2012. The oldest snapper was estimated to be 34 years old; it was 75cm long and caught by a commercial fisher. The next oldest were 2 fish, estimated to be 26 years old and caught by recreational fishers. These 2 fish measured 71cm and 90cm, highlighting the variability in growth rates between individual snapper.
Age-at-length
