NSW DPI GAME FISH TAGGING PROGRAM REPORT 2017-2018 Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 5 Figure 1. Number of fish recaptured by year, 2017/18. .................................................................................... 5 The Program to date ............................................................................................................................. 6 Species summary of tagging activity for 2017/18 ................................................................................ 7 Black marlin ....................................................................................................................................................... 9 Southern bluefin tuna ..................................................................................................................................... 10 Blue marlin ...................................................................................................................................................... 10 Striped marlin .................................................................................................................................................. 11 Sailfish .............................................................................................................................................................. 11 Yellowfin tuna .................................................................................................................................................. 12 Tagging trends over time .................................................................................................................... 12 Distribution of tagging effort in 2017/18 ........................................................................................... 16 Recapture highlights in 2017/18 ........................................................................................................ 16 Black marlin ..................................................................................................................................................... 16 Blue marlin ...................................................................................................................................................... 19 Sailfish .............................................................................................................................................................. 19 Striped marlin .................................................................................................................................................. 20 Spearfish & Swordfish ..................................................................................................................................... 21 Southern bluefin tuna ..................................................................................................................................... 22 Albacore ........................................................................................................................................................... 24 Yellowtail kingfish ............................................................................................................................................ 25 Samson fish ...................................................................................................................................................... 26 Mako shark ...................................................................................................................................................... 27 Recaptures with no tag cards ............................................................................................................. 28 Scientific value of the Game Fish Tagging Program ........................................................................... 29 Focus on longtail tuna (Thunnus tonggol) .......................................................................................... 29 Geographic range ............................................................................................................................................ 29 Movements...................................................................................................................................................... 30 Growth and size ............................................................................................................................................... 30 Reproduction ................................................................................................................................................... 31 Behaviour......................................................................................................................................................... 31 2 Fisheries ........................................................................................................................................................... 31 Tagging Tips ........................................................................................................................................ 32 Recommended tagging areas .......................................................................................................................... 32 How to tag large game fish .............................................................................................................................. 32 How to tag small game/sport fish ................................................................................................................... 33 Tagging and improved survival tips ................................................................................................................. 33 Estimating the size of tagged fish .................................................................................................................... 34 Reporting a previously tagged fish .................................................................................................................. 34 Contact the program ....................................................................................................................................... 34 Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................ 35 Appendix I: All recaptures of tagged fish reported in 2017/2018 ...................................................... 36 Appendix II: Top tagging boats and anglers for 2017/2018. .............................................................. 40 Key species tagged 2017/2018 ........................................................................................................................ 40 Top tagging boats and anglers 2017/18 .......................................................................................................... 40 Appendix III ......................................................................................................................................... 44 Scientific publications that have utilized or cited data from the Tagging Program ........................................ 44 University theses ............................................................................................................................................. 48 Current projects using data ............................................................................................................................. 49 Magazines, email lists ...................................................................................................................................... 49 Figure 1 Number of fish recaptured by year, 2017/18 .......................................................................................... 5 Figure 2 Total numbers of fish tagged as species groupings, 1974-2018 ............................................................. 7 Figure 3 Proportions of black marlin tagged by State, 2017/18 ........................................................................... 9 Figure 4 Proportions of southern bluefin tuna tagged by State, 2017/18 .......................................................... 10 Figure 5 Proportions of blue marlin tagged by region, 2017/18 ......................................................................... 10 Figure 6 Proportions of striped marlin tagged by region, 2017/18 .................................................................... 11 Figure 7 Proportions of sailfish tagged by region, 2017/18 ................................................................................ 11 Figure 8 Numbers of the main species and species groups tagged in 2017/2018 and the previous four years 12 Figure 9 Individual plots of numbers of key gamefish species tagged over the past 11 years ........................... 13 Figure 10 Species groups tagged in 2017/2018 .................................................................................................. 14 3 Figure 11 Species groups recaptured in 2017/2018 ............................................................................................ 15 Figure 12 Positions of releases of tagged gamefish during 2017/18 .................................................................. 16 Figure 13 The three longest distances moved by recaptured black marlin recorded this year, especially notable since all three were recaptured north of the equator ...............................................................................