Fishing app will record muchneeded data

THE traditional fishing kit may not include a cellphone, but a newlylaunched app could be set to change that.

Mainland Catch aims not only to help anglers keep within catch limits, but to use ‘‘citizen science’’ to gather muchneeded data on New Zealand fisheries.

The app’s official launch took place at Dunedin’s Tautuku Fishing Club on Friday.

It is the result of a collaboration between Fish Mainland, Fisheries New Zealand, and Plink Software, with funding from the Ministry for Primary Industries Sustainable Food & Fibre Futures and the Myers Foundation Trust.

Fish Mainland director and Tautuku Fishing Club president Brett Bensemann said the app would help recreational fishers navigate the

National Blue Cod Strategy’s traffic light system.

Blue cod catch limits are set at different numbers around the coast nationwide, depending on what colour an area has been designated.

Dunedin sits on the cusp of two categories.

While Otago Harbour is in the orange zone with a daily limit of 10 fish per person, those heading south from Taiaroa Head cross into the green zone, where the limit is 15.

‘‘Where you've fished in a green area, and you've recorded your fish in a green area, on the app it will show its been caught in a green area,’’ Mr Bensemann said.

When anglers then brought their catch through an orange area, they would then have proof they had complied with regulations.

People could also record fish they had caught and released, he said.

However, be believed the most significant aspect of the app was the potential for recreational fishers to establish a record base that had been lacking until now.

The information that could now be recorded would be helpful in determining the need for marine reserves or closure areas, he said.

‘‘It’s voluntary, but if you start using the app you start seeing the need for data — there is certainly need for recreational data.’’

It was also a safety device, he said. If someone failed to return from a fishing trip as expected, the app would show when and where they had used the app.

It was easy to use and roadshows would also be held to introduce people to the app, he said.

The app was set to be expanded to help improve other areas, such as, paua management in Kaikoura.

‘‘There are huge possibilities in the future.’’

PHOTO: GREGOR RICHARDSON Hooked . . . Tautuku Fishing Club's Mike Todd (left), Brett Bensemann and Ian Gunion (right) show National's Todd Muller (centre right) the Mainland Catch app, which helps local fishermen navigate fishing boundaries and catch limits.