Queensland the Smart State Fisheries Long Term Monitoring Program Sampling Protocol Freshwater: (2000 onwards) Section 1 006 November 2 Fisheries Long Term Monitoring Program Sampling Protocol Freshwater: (2000 onwards) Section 1 November 2006 Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries Queensland ISSN 0727-6273 PR06-2620 This document may be cited as: Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries (2006). Fisheries Long Term Monitoring Program Sampling Protocol – Freshwater: (2000 onwards) Section 1. Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries, Brisbane, Australia Acknowledgements: This protocol has been contributed to by many DPI&F staff, in particular Darren Smallwood, Wayne Hagedoorn, Michael Hutchison, Eddie Jebreen, Sue Helmke, Chad Lunow, Clair Bullock, Terry Vallance, Brooke Young, Len Olyott, Malcolm Dunning and Olivia Whybird. General Disclaimer: The Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries (DPI&F) seeks to maximise the economic potential of Queensland’s primary industries on a sustainable basis. This publication has been compiled by Fisheries, Assessment and Monitoring. While every care has been taken in preparing this publication, the State of Queensland accepts no responsibility for decisions or actions taken as a result of any data, information, statement or advice, expressed or implied, contained in this report. © The State of Queensland, Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries 2006 Copyright protects this material. Except as permitted by the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth), reproduction by any means (photocopying, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise), making available online, electronic transmission or other publication of this material is prohibited without the prior written permission of The Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries, Queensland. 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Inquiries should be addressed to: Intellectual Property and Commercialisation Unit Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries GPO Box 46 Brisbane Qld 4001 Contents Section 1 Rationale 1 Objectives 1 Sites 2 Rivers 2 Reach selection 4 Times 5 Monitoring Procedures 6 On-site Procedures 6 Permits and approvals 8 Permits and permission 8 Notifications 8 ar Data Access 9 th on Ye References M 9 Section 2 – Operational Protocols Section 2 (DPI&F In Prep.) of this sampling protocol can be obtained by contacting the Fisheries Data Coordinator: Telephone +61 7 3405 6822, Fax +61 7 3224 2805 or Email [email protected] Acronyms DPI&F Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries, Queensland LTMP Long Term Monitoring Program, DPI&F GPS Global Positioning System Rationale Queensland’s freshwater reaches contain a diverse array of freshwater fish, with over 130 native species recognised in north eastern Australia; approximately half of the fish fauna of the Australian continent (Pusey et al. 2004). In addition to these strictly freshwater fishes, many species from otherwise marine or estuarine families utilise freshwater reaches of Queensland waterways during some stage of their lifecycle. This includes a number of recreationally and commercially important species, such as mullet (Mugilidae), barramundi (Centropomidae), mangrove jack (Lutjanidae), bigeye trevally (Carangidae), bream (Sparidae) and some sharks and rays (Carcharhinidae and Dasyatidae). Telephone surveys by the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries (DPI&F) have demonstrated that although the popularity of impoundment fishing is increasing the majority of Queensland freshwater anglers fish in rivers (McInnes 2006). Unlike impoundment-based fisheries, which are largely dependent on fish stocking, the majority of recreational and commercially important fish in rivers are wild bred. These fisheries are therefore dependent on maintenance of viable river systems and the implementation of appropriate fishing regulations to ensure adequate recruitment of fish into the populations. The sustainability of native freshwater fish stocks is highly dependant on the condition of the freshwater habitat. DPI&F Long Term Monitoring Program (LTMP) freshwater project was established to provide trend information about fish populations, including information on recruitment. Data collected may provide early warning of declines, or show increases in fish numbers. It may be possible to link trends in abundance to changes in adjacent land use and water management. In recent times non-native species have been found to be living and breeding in the freshwater systems Month Year of Queensland. These introduced fish species may compete for available resources and prey on native species or their eggs. The LTMP collects data on the occurrence and changes in relative abundance of introduced species. Objectives The objectives of the freshwater monitoring program are to monitor selected rivers for changes to: • species diversity and abundance • size structure of key recreational and commercial species (see species list in DPI&F (In Prep.)) • occurrence of exotic fish species. 1 Sites Ten rivers are monitored by the program (Figure 1). In each river seven reaches, each containing six random locations are sampled. Rivers The river systems were selected based on the following criteria: • level of recreational angling pressure • Importance to commercial fisheries in adjacent coastal/estuarine areas • likelihood of changes in the near future (e.g. fishway installation, water infrastructure development) • previous monitoring at established sites • representative of a north east coastal, south east coastal, gulf or inland system • level of modification (at least one relatively unmodified river in each region was chosen) River systems chosen for monitoring (Figure 1): south east coastal drainage • Noosa River • Mary River • Albert/Logan Rivers west of the Great Dividing Range • Condamine /Balonne River • Warrego River north east coastal systems • Johnstone River • Herbert River • Daintree River Gulf of Carpentaria drainage • Gregory River • Mitchell River 2 Fisheries Long Term Monitoring Program Sampling Protocol – Freshwater: (2000 onwards) Section 1 Month Year Figure 1. Location of river systems monitored by the Long Term Monitoring Program. 3 Reach selection Sections of each river were selected that were navigable by electrofishing boat, normally the lower two-thirds of the river systems. On all river systems, reaches upstream of any low weirs which occasionally or regularly drown out were included. Reaches upstream of major dams were included on the Condamine and Warrego Rivers as yellowbelly (Macquaria ambigua), the main angler target species, may have self-sustaining populations upstream of the major dams. However impounded waters, which inundate more than the width of the main river channel, were excluded. On coastal river systems, tidal freshwaters are included if they were known to be consistently fresh. This was indicated by the presence of freshwater aquatic plants, including Vallisneria gigantea and local knowledge. Selected sections of each river were divided into 2 km reaches and numbered from the source of the river. Random numbers were used to select seven sampling reaches on each river. If no point of access was available for a selected reach, the next upstream reach was used. The first year of sampling in remote North Queensland regions was devoted to reach selection only. Once reach selection was finalised, Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates of the upstream and downstream limits were recorded. Reach locations are fixed for all sampling years. Reaches were divided into 80 shot locations 50 m long and numbered from upstream to downstream alternating from the left to right. Each year, six navigable shot locations are randomly chosen until six sections within the reach have been selected. Where the river is less than 30 m wide, no two shot locations are sampled on directly opposite banks. This prevents shots overlapping or moving fish into another shot location. To permit some variation in shot location selection each year, the minimum navigable reach length required for six standard electrofishing shots is: • 200 m where the river is more than 30 m wide, or • 300 m where the river is less than 30 m wide However, use of longer pools or several navigable pools/sections within a reach is preferable. 4 Fisheries Long Term Monitoring Program Sampling Protocol – Freshwater: (2000 onwards) Section 1 Times One week is allocated to sample each coastal river system, including travel between reaches. Remote western and Gulf of Carpentaria rivers may take up to eight days to complete. One week is scheduled between surveys to provide flexibility for travel to more remote sites and accommodate problems such as bad weather and equipment maintenance, which could disrupt the sampling program. Table 1. Approximate survey times for the LTMP freshwater monitoring – X indicates usual sampling time, years indicate when sampling has been conducted outside usual sampling times (Source: LTMP database, October 2005). Sampling of northern rivers was scheduled earlier in later years to avoid problems with low water levels. River System Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Noosa River X X Mary River X Albert-Logan River X Condamine-Balonne River X X 2001 Warrego River X X 2001 Daintree River X 2000/01 1999 Mitchell River X 2000/01 Gregory River X X 2000/01 Johnstone River X 2002 2000/01 1999 Herbert River X 2000/01 1999 Month Year 5 Monitoring Procedures On-site Procedures