8 Mar 2017 - 7 Apr 2017

During the fourth month (8 March 2017 – 7 April 2017) of the NSW North Coast Shark Meshing Trial, SMART drumlines were deployed for totals of 10 and 9 days at Evans Head and Ballina-Lennox Head, respectively (Table 1). Due to flooding and sea conditions affecting the bar crossing conditions at the entrance to the Evans and Richmond Rivers, the number of days that SMART drumlines were deployed was reduced considerably from previous months. The mean number of hours that SMART drumlines were deployed at each location varied daily depending on ocean conditions (Table 1).

Two (2) alerts were recorded from the SMART drumlines for this reporting period. These included one (1) alert with no catch and one (1) Tiger Shark at Evans Head (Table 2). The Tiger Shark was deemed to be in good health and released alive. After capture, sharks are relocated further offshore if conditions allow.  Data indicates that sharks depart the area following capture and release.

Table 1: The mean number of SMART drumlines deployed each day, number of days that the SMART Drumlines were deployed, the mean and range of hours SMART Drumlines were deployed each day and the number of alerts between 8 March 2017 and 7 April 2017.

Table 2: The location and number of sharks caught and released on SMART drumlines for the reporting period.

Table 3: Cumulative total of species caught and released on SMART drumlines during each reporting month of the NSW North Coast Shark Meshing Trial.