Tasmania Police are cracking down on anglers who are catching sand flathead that are either undersized, oversized or in violation of new bag limits.
The significant changes to limits on recreational sand flathead fishing and a total ban on commercial fishing came into effect on November 1 and were implemented in response to the declining numbers of sand flathead stocks across the state.
“Recent checks by police have seen fishers fined or cautioned for under or oversized Sand Flathead or exceeding the daily catch limit across a range of species,” a spokesperson said.
“Several recreational fishers in the Burnie, Ulverstone and Devonport areas have been detected with under or oversized Sand Flathead.”
“A commercial fisherman at Stanley has also been detected exceeding the number of Calamari taken in a single fishing trip.”
The illegally caught catches were seized by Police, with officers also able to seize equipment and even vessels “depending on the extent of the offending involved”.
Fines for recreational fishers start at $390 for an under or oversized Sand Flathead, while a commercial fisher can expect to be slapped with a minimum fine of $780.
The crackdown coincides with the University of Tasmania’s Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies recently receiving $4.2 million in funding to aid in the conservation of the sand flathead.
The research will focus on understanding the biology, movement and growth of the fish to improve stock health and ensure its sustainability.
Recreational fishers catch about 98% of all sand flathead caught in Tasmania, according to a recent report by the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.
