Our team of Fish-LIGHT scientists is undertaking research to understand if the use of low-impact fishing gears can reduce harm to threatened, endangered and protected (TEP) species, such as turtles, dolphins, dugongs and sawfish.
Gear types
Low-impact fishing gear types, such as fish traps, trap nets, tunnel nets and line fishing, are designed to reduce harm and minimise fish entanglement.
This enables non-target species to be alive at the point of capture or even excluded before entering the gear.
Species protection
The low-impact gear types being trialled by Fish-LIGHT scientists allow for a greater ability to catch only what is intended and avoid harming TEP species.
This means that TEP species can be excluded from entering or interacting with the gear, while target fish species can be captured.
The Fish-LIGHT trials will generate scientific data that:
- helps scientists to understand how the gear types interact with protected marine animals
- documents the condition of released target, protected and bycatch species from each of the low-impact gear types.
More information
Fish-LIGHT is led by the Department of Primary Industries, and co-funded by the:
- Queensland Government
- Fisheries Research and Development Corporation.
Contact
Last updated: 18 Sep 2026