268 
Fishery Bulletin 96(2), 1 998 
ment into areas around reefs farther offshore (Fig. 
2B), this species essentially occupies three different 
habitats during the course of its life cycle. Any man- 
agement plans for S. puncata must therefore take 
into account the need both to protect these habitats 
and to ensure that fishing pressure in those habi- 
tats where fishing occurs does not have a deleteri- 
ous effect on the stock of this species. 
The postlarvae of S. punctata settle predominantly 
in very sheltered nearshore waters of marine embay- 
ments and estuaries (Jenkins and May, 1994; Fowler 
and Short, 1996; Hyndes et al., 1996a; Hyndes, 
unpubl. data). However, S. punctata moves out into 
slightly deeper waters (2-10 m) in marine embay - 
ments and estuaries at ca. 1.5 years in age and at a 
total length of 250 mm (Fig. 2B). Because this latter 
length corresponds to the legal minimum length for 
capture (LML) of S. punctata on the lower west coast 
and approaches the LML of 280 mm on the south 
coast, this species does not become commercially and 
recreationally exploited until it has left its very shal- 
low nursery areas and has entered deeper waters. 
This species remains in these slightly deeper waters 
until it reaches 350-400 mm (Fig. 2B) and is thus 
available for capture in marine embayments and 
estuaries when it is predominantly between 1.5 and 
2.5 years in age. Because this species is most heavily 
exploited when it is in the deeper waters of marine 
embayments and estuaries, it is fished mainly dur- 
ing this relatively restricted period of its life cycle. 
From a management point of view, it is also relevant 
that the fishery in marine embayments and estuar- 
ies is based on fish that have not yet reached 410 mm, 
the length at which they typically first become ma- 
ture. Subsequently, those S. punctata that have run 
the “gauntlet” of numerous fishermen in marine 
embayments and estuaries move farther out into 
areas in and around reefs in deeper waters where 
they attain maturity and where the reduced num- 
ber of fishermen targeting this species makes it less 
susceptible to capture. Furthermore, the catches of 
S. punctata in the more offshore waters are further 
reduced in winter, when sea conditions are far less 
favorable for fishing and when, according to fisher- 
men, S. punctata are less likely to take bait. Thus, 
because S. punctata spawns during winter, fishing 
pressure on this species is relatively low during the 
spawning period. 
Because catch and effort statistics for the commer- 
cial fishery in southwestern Australia do not sug- 
gest that the catch rate for S. punctata is declining, 
this species would not appear currently to be over- 
exploited in this region. However, the number of shel- 
tered nearshore areas that act as nursery areas for 
S. punctata are limited and are often located in the 
type of region where marinas and other developments 
are likely to be proposed. Furthermore, recreational 
fishing effort is rising markedly, and the increasing 
use of larger vessels and more sophisticated equip- 
ment, such as global positioning systems (GPS), 
means that, particularly in deeper waters, fish are 
now beginning to be exploited to a greater extent. 
The resultant advances in fishing efficiency also 
mean that more sophisticated measures of effort are 
required to obtain reliable and comparable catch-per- 
unit-of-effort data for S. punctata from the recre- 
ational sector, which is ultimately expected to be- 
come the main exploiter of this resource. 
Acknowledgments 
We thank the large number of people who helped with 
sampling and the numerous recreational anglers who 
provided fish carcasses, particularly Ron Robinson 
and Doug Clegg. Gratitude is also expressed to Gor- 
don Thomson for sectioning ovaries, to Alex Hesp for 
sectioning otoliths, and also to Keith Jones, Tony 
Fowler, Norm Hall, and Greg Jenkins for construc- 
tive comments on the manuscript. Financial support 
was provided by the Western Australian Fisheries 
Department, Australian Fisheries Research and De- 
velopment Corporation, and Murdoch University. 
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