Skip to content. Hunter-gatherer Season in Perth: everything you need to know. Jan 4 Abalone awaits Abalone is the more luxurious way to say sea snails. Your abalone gathering essentials: A recreational fishing licence All the necessary equipment: mesh bag , wetsuit , snorkel gear, gloves, reef shoes and more. This period marks the start of what is called the whites run.
The whites run also coincides with an annual event of seagrass flowering. The seagrass flowers are often called sea bananas. Once you start to see the floating clumps of sea bananas you can be sure that the white run is either under way or only days away. You can see the difference between the red cray early and late season flanked by two whites, which run from about November to January same species, different stages of migration.
The whites run of crayfish is so important for the rec sector because this is the time that the majority of crays will make their migration into the shallow coastal waters. It is this time that the recreational sector has its best chances of getting good catches. Recreational crayfish catches are made in two main ways, the most popular is by using craypots. Craypots can be wood, plastic, cane or steel, the design is very specific and must meet regulations that allow for maximum length, width, height and most importantly escape gap sizes and placement.
Pots are baited and set overnight and then pulled the next day. Diving is the other main way of catching crayfish. Most divers search under rock ledges to find the crays and then either use a cray snare or a gloved hand to grab their quarry. Diving for crays is challenging but with the right gear and know how, you can pick yourself up some nice jumbo sized crayfish for the table!
Check out our Diving for Crayfish article to learn all about how to catch yourself a feed of these tasty specimens. Crayfishing is a fantastic recreation and is the best way to secure a fresh feed of this fine delicacy. Probably the most rewarding part of catching crays is the ability to provide fresh crayfish for the Christmas lunch or dinner.
It is what a true West Australian Christmas meal is built around. Dropping cray pots is both fun and rewarding, it is also a great to take the whole family out to pull the pots early in the morning.
The anticipation of what the next pot will hold never loses its shine and then to see what comes up is even more exciting. While we are excited about the crays, kids will go nuts about the octopus, shells, hermit crabs, starfish, sea lice and wobbegong sharks to name a few of the occasional by catch.
In summer there is no better way to start your day. Found between Exmouth in the north and Walpole in the south, crayfish inhabit inshore and offshore reefs, with larger individuals preferring deeper offshore reefs and are often found under ledges or inside caves. To fish for crays it is essential that you have a recreational rock lobster licence.
The recreational rock lobster rules are probably some of the most complicated. However, a maximum of two floats only may now be attached to your pot and you are required to ensure the top half of your pot ropes are hung vertically in the water column, when using more than 20 m of rope see diagram below.
In addition, recreational fishers on both the south and west coasts will now have the same night fishing curfew see below for more details. The closed season is no longer required for the sustainable management of the resource. These arrangements complement those for the commercial sector who have a 12 month seasons following the introduction of quota management.
You are still required to have a licence to fish for any species of rock lobster and to produce it when requested to by a Fisheries and Marine Officer. All year round. However, while there is no longer a season for catching rock lobster, you must not pull a pot or dive for rock lobster at any time either:.
When more than 20 m of rope combined pot line and float rig is attached to your pot, you must ensure that the top half of the pot line rope is held vertically in the water column see diagram. This applies to fishers all year round. Reducing the amount of rope on the surface of the water will minimise the risk of gear entanglements with migrating hump back whales during the winter months, and;. It will also reduce the loss of fishing gear from boats that run over or entangle with pot ropes.
If the lobster you caught has a single spine that runs from between the eyes to the centre of the body, it is a southern rock lobster. Other known types are: The Tasmanian giant freshwater crayfish found in northern Tasmania rivers The Murray crayfish , found mostly in the Murray-Darling Basin Marron in WA where one of its two species currently tagged as endangered The common yabby, red-claw crayfish, and western yabby are also quite popular.
Guide to Catching Crayfish Before you try catching crayfish, you must obtain a licence first , whether you are fishing recreationally or commercially. Here are other rules that you must adhere to when fishing for crayfish in Western Australia: Minimum Legal Size: Upon catching western rock lobster, you should ensure it measures at least 76mm. The same requirement applies to tropical rock lobster.
For southern rock lobster, it should be at least The other end should be over the back of the carapace or shell. Meanwhile, if it is a southern rock lobster, measure it from the groove at the end of the antennae at the front part of the head.
The other end of the gauge should be over the back of the carapace. Maximum Bag Size: If you catch more than eight rock lobsters or four tropical rock lobsters, you should carefully release the excess.
You cannot return to shore or back to your boat if you have more than the allowed bag limit. Females: Back in the day, female western rock lobsters had a maximum legal size limit. This limit has been lifted, but no one is permitted to catch females with eggs. You cannot remove their eggs so you could take the lobster with you. If there are any signs of breeding, such as females in berry or sitting with the tail curled under, you should set them free, as well.
Berrying means they are carrying eggs. A female ready to spawn has a black spot or tar spot found under the carapace right between the back legs. You cannot catch tar spot females. Freeing: If you have exceeded the limit, caught a female with eggs, or taken a smaller lobster, you are required by law to return it to the water within five minutes.
Diving Rules: Diving can only catch lobster using a blunt crook, snare, or by hand. Anything else, including a net or spear, is considered illegal. Pot Limits: A licence holder can only have two rock lobster pots with a maximum of six pots per boat as long as there are at least three licenced fishers on board.
Only licence holders can set and pull the pots. Sharing is allowed, provided that boat fishers carry permits. Pot Specifications: A put should not be more than 1,mm at its widest point. It should only be within mm in height. There should only be one entrance gap.
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