Snapper have a continuous distribution around the southern coastline of mainland Australia. They inhabit waters from Hinchinbrook Island in Queensland to Barrow Island in Western Australia. They are occasionally found off the north coast of Tasmania, but no further south (Ref. 28578). Recorded from Shark Bay (Ref. 115274). Also found in Lord Howe I. (Ref. 8879, 75154).

Stock structure: Tagging and genetic studies (Ref. 28578, 28584) have indicated the presence of several stocks or breeding populations of snapper in Australian waters. There is considerable overlap in the distributions of these populations.

Commercial fishery: Snapper are fished commercially throughout their range. In Queensland, large numbers of juveniles are sometimes caught by demersal otter trawlers near reefs in Moreton Bay (Ref. 27645). In New South Wales, the main fishery is on the north coast around Coffs Harbour and Wooli (Ref. 28585). In Victoria, the main fishery is in Port Phillip Bay (80-90 % of the State's total catch), although small commercial catches are also taken from other bays and inlets and from open coastal waters (Ref. 26431). In South Australia, commercial fishing effort is concentrated in Spencer Gulf and Gulf St Vincent. In Western Australia, snapper are fished from Esperance to Barrow Island but the major fishery targets stocks near Shark Bay. The Western Australian fishery is distinctly seasonal. In the north, 75% of the catch is taken in winter (June and July), while in southern areas, summer is the peak fishing season.

In New South Wales, 70% of the snapper catch is harvested by trap fishers and the rest by fishers using bottom set longlines and handlines. In Victoria over 80% of the catch is taken on longlines, while in South Australia, snapper are caught using (in order of quantities) handlines, bottom set longlines, hauling nets, power hauling and large mesh gillnets. Most of the Western Australian catch is taken on handlines, although traps and droplines are also used. Large quantities of juveniles are often caught in prawn trawl nets in estuaries, although this is an incidental catch.

Since 1988, considerable quantities of snapper caught in the Shark Bay fishery have been exported to Japan as whole chilled fish.

Most of the Australian snapper catch is sold on the domestic market, particularly in Sydney where large quantities are freighted from interstate and some imported from New Zealand. Snapper are usually sold as fresh whole or gilled and gutted fish.

Aquaculture: A study (Ref. 28588) reported that the growth of snapper in captivity can be increased to a rate acceptable for aquaculture.

Recreational fishery: Snapper are an important recreational species, highly prized for both sport and eating (Ref. 28578, 27018). In New South Wales anglers fish both in estuaries and offshore, while in Victoria most recreational fishing effort takes place in Port Phillip and Western Port bays. In South Australia, most effort is concentrated on the inshore waters of Spencer Gulf and Gulf St. Vincent, particularly around artificial reefs in the central and northern areas. In Western Australia, the major areas fished are the inshore waters of Shark Bay and coastal waters in the south of the State.

In Queensland, the recreational catch is estimated to be several times higher than the commercial catch (Ref. 30572). A lot of the recreational catch is undersized.

Most of the recreational snapper catch is taken by handline or rod-and-line using pilchards (Sardinops neopilchardus) for bait. Snapper are caught by both shore and boat-based anglers. The largest snapper recorded by the Australian Anglers Association up to 1993, was a 16.2 kg fish caught in Western Australia in 1988.

The sizes of recreational catches of snapper are probably considerable. The angler catch of snapper for Coffs Harbour is probably equivalent to 25% of the commercial catch in that area (Ref. 28585). In Victoria, the recreational catch of snapper in Port Phillip Bay in 1982-83 was conservatively estimated at 112 t or 44% of the total catch from the Bay (Ref. 27018), and in 1983, Western Australian anglers caught an estimated 10% of the State's snapper catch from the Shark Bay region.

Resource status: Commercial catch rates of snapper in New South Wales and Victoria have fallen in recent years while fishing effort has increased. It is not known whether this decline is due to natural population fluctuations, excessive fishing pressure or environmental degradation. The decline in the number of large fish in northern Spencer Gulf is due to excessive fishing effort (Ref. 28586). In Western Australia, there has been a reduction in the average size of fish caught in the trap and line fisheries. In Queensland, the commercial catch has fallen since 1992. The resource is over exploited in southern part of Queensland (Ref. 30572).

Also Ref. 2156, 27296.

Note on abudance in the early 1800s by Ref. 394: abundant, occured in schools in Shark Bay; was also abundant in Dick Hartog (island) where it was bait fished.