Feature: Brimful of Barra

The department has again been busy supporting recreational fishing in the Top End by producing barramundi fingerlings to restock popular manmade fishing sites.

As part of a three-year project funded through the NT Government’s $50 million investment in recreational fishing, the team at the Darwin Aquaculture Centre (DAC) produces thousands of barra fingerlings as part of a restocking program.

The fingerlings are spawned using local broodstock and grown in tanks using filtered saltwater, then gradually introduced to increasing amounts of freshwater over the seven days prior to their release.

In March 2019 DAC staff released 100,000 fingerlings into Manton Dam. In April they released 800 fingerlings and 40 larger barramundi (approximately 45cm) into the Palmerston Lakes. These larger fish were fingerlings from last year’s restocking program that were raised in DAC’s aquaponics system.

“Barramundi need saltwater to reproduce, so restocking Manton Dam and the Palmerston Lakes is needed to ensure ongoing opportunities to catch a barra at these popular family locations for years to come,” Matthew Osborne, Manager Aquaculture and Regional Development, said.

ANNUAL REPORT 2018-19 - DEPARTMENT OF PRIMARY INDUSTRY AND RESOURCES