A recreational crabber's copped a $10,000 fine for having 67 illegal mud crabs in his car at Redcliffe. Queensland Boating and Fisheries Patrol (QBFP) acting district officer Vaughan Heath said the heavy penalty handed down by the Redcliffe Magistrates Court is a warning to crabbers.
During the early hours of the morning, a search of the man’s vehicle found two large bags containing a total of 71 crabs – 67 of which were illegal.
Forty-eight were undersized male mud crabs and 19 were female mud crabs.
Exceeding possession limits, ignoring size limits and taking protected species shows a blatant disregard for the sustainability of our fisheries.
If you spot illegal fishing activities going on, call the Fishwatch hotline on 1800 017 116.
In Queensland, female mud crabs are no-take species while male mud crabs have a size limit of 15 cm across the carapace, with a limit of 10 per person.
