Rock lobster season dates set for Tasmania
by DPIPWE Fishing 8 Aug 2020 23:50 BST
Rock lobster © DPIPWE Fishing
The dates for the 2020 rock lobster season are now set:
Waters outside the East Coast Stock Rebuilding Zone (ECSRZ)
- The recreational sector will open on Sunday 1 November 2020.
- The commercial sector will open on Sunday 15 November 2020.
East Coast Stock Rebuilding Zone
- The recreational sector will open on Saturday 5 December 2020.
- The commercial sector will open on Tuesday 8 December 2020.
The slightly earlier opening date for waters outside the ECSRZ maintains the buffer of two weeks between the opening of the recreational and commercial seasons including the bonus of a long weekend for northern fishers.
Check the lobster rules
Rock lobster and abalone catch estimates
The Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies conducts annual surveys to estimate the recreational catch for rock lobster and abalone. For season 2019-2020 the survey reported:
Rock lobster
- 53,655 rock lobster were taken (54.3 tonnes).
- 66% of the total catch was taken by potting, 31% by diving and 3% by rings.
- The average catch rate was 0.76 lobsters per day with daily rates for diving (1.27 lobster) more than double that for pots (0.62 lobster).
- 72% of the catch was from the East Coast, 13% from the North Coast and 14% from the West Coast.
- The East Coast Stock Rebuilding Zone catch was 33.6 tonnes, under the 35 tonne notional recreational amount for this area.
Abalone
- 25,500 abalone were taken (12.6 tonnes).
- 75% of the catch (13 tonnes) was from the East Coast, 13% from the North Coast and 10% from the West Coast.
Read the IMAS report