NSW FADs deployed with GPS locations

The end of winter signals the start of the fish-aggreagting-device or FAD season in NSW. Right on cue, the East Australian Current (EAC) has started to make its presence felt along the NSW coast, with reports of marlin and 20kg-plus dolphin fish as far south as Sydney already.

Some of the recent satellite images shows water as warm as 22.5C lurking just offshore along the north coast. But by all accounts, it's been a winter of warm water, with some unseasonal game fishing encounters right along the Eastern Seaboard from May to September 2016.

NSW DPI has begun installing its FADs for the coming fishing season, with six deployed over the past week on the NSW North Coast. See the GPS locations below. You can also find the FADs on the new free FishSmart app well worth downloading in the app store.

All FADs between Tweed Heads and Port Macquarie should be in the water by the end of September, while the remainder as far south as Eden will be in by early December, the NSW Fisheries team says.

Given the year-round game fishing action, and the fact the FADs program is funded by fishing licences, some anglers are now asking why the FAD deployment doesn't run all year.

NSW Fisheries says FAD deployment is limited due to a combination of wear and tear on the gear coupled with peak whale migration periods and because "we are operating the FADs program in Commonwealth waters that results in the short term removal of the FADs in winter." Which sounds like some kind of legal obligation.

The northern NSW FADs remain in the water the longest from September through to June and are only removed over July and August. The length of the removal period extends the further south along the coast you travel to coincide with the influence of the EAC. The shortest deployment periods are between November and May on the far south coast with these FADs removed from June through September.

The FAD removal allows DPI to undertake essential maintenance on the equipment that isn't possible while the buoys are moored offshore. This helps prevent their failure during the peak fishing season through summer and autumn.

In some years, unseasonably warm water will persist over the winter months with some pelagic fish species also remaining off our coast, albeit in lower numbers than summer.

However, catch trends indicate that the majority of these fish move north into warmer latitudes over the winter months and with their retreat, NSW Fisheries say, adding that fishing behaviour tends to change with many fishers changing tactics to target inshore temperate species like snapper.

The good news is that six of the 10 NSW North Coast FADS have already been deployed at the time of going to press with this update. The remaining FADs will be deployed progressively deployed south, with all FADs in the water by December.

Some fascinating fisheries data and science is derived from the FAD program and the department wants you feedback. For example, acoustic tagging of mahi mahi off the NSW coast have revealed these fast-growing pelagic sportfish travel big distances.

One tagged mahi mahi was first recorded at the DPI Ballina FAD and a month later had moved south to be recorded on the Port Macquarie FAD. Six days after that, it turned up at the Terrigal FAD. The fish swam about 550km (straight line distance) in this five-week period. Another fish was tagged at the Port Macquarie FAD and then swam 30kms to the Laurieton FAD in under two hours.

Please contact NSW Fisheries if you discover a FAD adrift or no longer at its posted location. Remember that tying off to FADs is prohibited. If you see a boat tied to a FAD, please report it to this including the registration of the vessel. NSW Fisheries will keep the DPI website up to date as more FADs are deployed. See the NSW Fisheries FAD page for more. To stay up to date with FAD deployments as they happen, sign up to the FADs Email Update by clicking on this LINK.

FAD Location    Latitude (S)    Longitude (E)
(1)Tweed Heads    28° 09.730'    153° 41.000'
(2) Byron Bay       28° 36.723'    153° 42.758'
(3) Ballina             28° 54.430'    153° 41.189
(4) Evans Head     29° 06.400'    153° 36.200'
(5) Yamba             29° 32.480'    153° 26.517'
(6) Wooli              29° 52.703'    153° 26.117'
(7) Coffs               30° 14.858'    153° 21.605'
(8) Nambucca      30° 39.622’    153° 08.934’
(9) SW Rocks      30° 50.534'    153° 11.803'
(10) Port Mac'      31° 24.567'    153° 04.725'
See the link above for all the FAD co-ordinates as they are rolled out along the NSW coast.

Last but not least, NSW Fisheries is running a FADs T-shirt competition to encourage anglers to provide fishing reports and photos from their local FAD. Send them to NSW DPI at . At the end of each month, the FADs user providing the best photo will win a FADs T-shirt. Please try to include the FAD in the background of the photo.