Our vessels operate in two main fishing zones centered around Australian Sub-Antarctic territories, these are Macquarie Island to the SE of Tasmania and Heard Island which lies SW of Western Australia. Austral Fisheries is proud of its demonstrated record of responsible fishing in these unique areas.
Macquarie Island
Austral have an entitlement to catch toothfish around Macquarie Island and have been working this fishery since 1994. The operations around Macquarie are targeted around the Patagonian Toothfish where bycatch is less than 1% and interaction with seabirds is minimal.
Heard / McDonald Island Group
Heard Island is home to Australia's only active volcano and permanently covered in snow and cloud, Big Ben dominates the Islands topography.
The main commercial species in this fishery are Patagonian Toothfish and Mackerel Icefish and again bycatch levels are remarkably low at approximately 1% of catch.
