Taking stock – getting the most out of our fisheries

The enhancement of recreational fisheries (stocking) is big business in Australia. Since 2006 over 46 million fish have been stocked throughout New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland alone. These stocking efforts have helped to create a number of ‘put and take’ fisheries which have reached legendary status among Australia’s angling community. Places such as Awoonga and Tinaroo really highlight what can be achieved through carefully designed stocking programs.

Research can play an important role in ensuring that stocking activities provide the desired results (for example enhanced recreational fisheries and recovery of populations of threatened species), and do not have unintentional negative impacts (for example predation of small native fish or frogs by larger stocked fish).

Angling for Conservation does not incorporate information on every stocking event that has taken place around Australia – that would be a massive job. Instead, the Angling for Conservation database provides information on research projects that have been undertaken, either to better understand benefits received from stocking, or to identify and minimise negative impacts associated with stocking.

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