Recreational Fishing

To ensure the long-term health and availability of our fish stocks, it is critical that enough fish of each species remain in the water to reproduce and replace the numbers removed each year by fishing.

To achieve this it is essential to control the numbers and size of fish taken. This is done by setting limits on:

  • the size of fish that can be taken and how many can be taken (catch limits)
  • the fishing gear you can use for particular species.

Many fish have traditional breeding and nursery grounds. To protect these habitats and to protect breeding and juvenile fish there might also be restrictions on:

Some fish species have such limited numbers they are protected species and must not be taken from the water at all times, or at certain stages of their life cycle.

Copies of the South Australian Recreational Fishing Guide can be obtained from your local Fisheries Office or tackle shop, or by phoning FISHWATCH on 1800 065 522. You can also view the guide online.

By following these guidelines and fishing responsibly we can all play our part in preserving fish stocks for the future.

PIRSA Fisheries works to provide high quality professional customer services that are regularly reviewed and continually improved and updated. The Customer Service Strategy outlines the services that are available to you, advises how you can help improve the service and what to do if you are unhappy with the service.

Make sure you keep up to date with all the latest fishing news by signing up for our free FishFacts e-newsletter.

View a short video story on the 2007-08 Recreational Fishers survey. (4.11 Mb wmv)

View transcript