Status of nearshore finfish stocks in south-western Western Australia: Part 1: Australian herring

The status of the popular nearshore finfish resource in the West Coast Bioregion (WCB) of Western Australia (WA) was largely unknown prior to this study. Previously, declining catches of several nearshore species had highlighted the risk to their sustainability and the need for greater certainty about their status. Recently, the risk further increased due to management changes in the WCB aimed at reducing the catch of demersal scalefish, which are likely to result in a shift in targeting towards nearshore species. This increase in fishing pressure on nearshore species will be on top of any increase due to the continuing human population growth in the WCB