Dispersal of yellowtail kingfish (Seriola lalandi) from a coastal embayment following a recreational fisheries enhancement stocking program: attempts to integrate aquaculture and habitat-based initiatives

Abstract

Fisheries enhancement initiatives including marine stocking and artificial reef deployments are becoming increasingly common in many parts of the world. Combining the two by releasing hatchery reared fish onto artificial reefs is used in sea-ranching operations but is an approach rarely adopted for recreational fisheries. Yellowtail kingfish (Seriola lalandi) form a valuable recreational fishery in Australia and in 2018 a pilot stocking program was initiated to enhance this fishery. Fish were released onto estuarine artificial reefs in Botany Bay to evaluate if estuarine artificial reefs are suitable release habitat for juvenile yellowtail kingfish and to monitor their dispersal patterns using acoustic telemetry and a tag-recapture program. Both approaches showed similar patterns, indicating juvenile yellowtail kingfish rapidly dispersed from the release location and can travel at least 60 km during their first weeks in the wild. Twenty percent of the acoustically tagged fish entered nearby estuaries to the north and south and tagged fish were also recaptured in these estuaries, indicating that the estuaries provide habitat for juveniles. There was little interaction between stocked fish and two large coastal artificial reefs positioned near Botany Bay. Stocked yellowtail kingfish will likely disperse rapidly from release locations which is consistent with their pelagic life history. While this may present challenges to fisheries managers, increasing release numbers to maintain stocking densities over a broader area may provide a solution. Future releases of fish on coastal natural and artificial reefs are an important next step in refining stocking practices for this species and will help further identify key juvenile habitats.