Deep sea fish appear in shallows at Port Wakefield as algal bloom wreaks havoc on Gulf St Vincent
A Port Wakefield fisherman says deep sea fish are now being caught in less than two metres of water as the toxic algal bloom continues to wreak havoc on SA’s marine ecosystem.
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A fisherman at the tip of the Gulf St Vincent says the marine ecosystem has been “turned upside down” as the aquaculture industry grapples with the algal bloom.
Bart Butson has fished the waters off Port Wakefield for 35 years, but has seen his catches get smaller as the bloom takes its toll.
“It’s starting to bite a bit now,” Mr Butson told The Advertiser.
“There’s no Southern Calamari in Gulf At Vincent being caught.”
He said the amount of “commercial calamari” fished in Gulf St Vincent for the month of July was 24 kilograms, 0.26 percent of the 9,000 kilograms caught in the Spencer Gulf.
The numbers of King George Whiting around Port Wakefield have held steady, making it one of the few places in the Gulf where fishers are still able to make a living, but Mr Butson said he expects his catches to shrink as the bloom shifts north.
He also said he’d been catching deep sea species including Pilchards and Deep Sea Trevalla in less than two metres of water, something he’d never seen in his 35 years of experience.
“It’s just like the marine ecosystem has been turned upside down,” he said.
“We’ve never caught those fish in the shallow water.”
Mr Butson said the fishing community “welcomed” the recently announced government funding to help those affected by the bloom, while adding it had been a “little late”, but said more was required to help the fishing industry.
“We’re not through the end of this catastrophe, and quite simply, without government support there won’t be much of a fishing industry in South Australia.”
“They’re (the government) trying very hard to react to this very unusual circumstance, and we appreciate that.”
“There’s always more, and we look forward to working with the government on further research on these issues.”
It comes as South Australian Oyster Growers Association chair Peter Treloar reassured the community that the state’s oysters remain “safe to eat” and the industry is “open and fully operational”.
Mr Treloar said it’s “business as usual” for the majority of the harvest areas, including Coffin Bay, Cowell, Streaky Bay and Haslam.
“It is a precautionary measure only that a small number of oyster farms have temporarily closed because of elevated brevetoxin levels,” Mr Treloar said.
“This includes most recently one site in the Port Lincoln harvest area, along with nine farms in Stansbury, American River, and Port Vincent.”
Mr Treloar encouraged South Australians to continue to support SA’s industry by buying local, and that all SA oysters are tested to meet “national standards”.
“The algae Karenia mikimotoi, which is causing the current bloom, does not produce brevetoxin and hasn’t affected any farmed oysters to date.”
“Our oyster industry is largely made up of small family-run businesses that are the backbone to many coastal communities.”
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Originally published as Deep sea fish appear in shallows at Port Wakefield as algal bloom wreaks havoc on Gulf St Vincent
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