Craig standing next to 24 derelict and unlawful crab pots from Constant and Victor Creek.

Crabbing Tips

July 21, 2022

Newly recruited Queensland Boating and Fisheries Patrol (QBFP) Officer Craig spent 2 days over low tide removing 24 derelict and unlawful crab pots from Constant and Victor Creek, Mackay. Crabbing

Before you go out, make sure you check the crab pot requirements on fisheries.qld.gov.au or fishing app ‘Qld fishing 2.0’.

Here’s some crabbing tips:
✔ Check the tide range before leaving
✔ Use a heavy-duty crab pot
✔ Tie your pot to a tree above high tide line (remember a tag with your surname).

Responsible crab and lobster fishing

DO:

Make sure your crab pot/dilly is heavy enough and has enough rope attached to the float so it’s not lost in strong tidal currents. Lost crabbing gear can harm marine animals and becomes marine litter.
It’s best practice to make sure your pots/dillies are in water deep enough at all stages of the tide so marine animals caught in the gear are not exposed to the sun and unwanted crabs can be released alive.
Sort your crabs on a pot-by-pot basis to remove any no-take crabs before moving on. If you don’t, any illegal catch in your pot is considered to be in your possession.
Check your pots/dillies regularly to ensure any bycatch or no-take crabs can be released unharmed. Ideally, you should not leave gear unattended for more than 7 days. If you’re not sure when you’ll be back, take it with you.

DON’T:

Hook crabs: Hooking crabs is illegal.
Interfere with another person’s crabbing gear: This is a serious offence that carries heavy penalties. Stealing crabs or crab pots is a criminal offence – if you’re caught you will be reported to the police.

More information on the DAF website

Report unlawful crabbing equipment via the Fishwatch hotline 1800 017 116.