Local prawn fishers enjoyed their best catch in two years during their Christmas run.Nearly 470 tonnes of prawn was caught by the local fishing fleet before Christmas, with nightly catches lifting to allow the stock to be caught.
Spencer Gulf and West Coast Prawn Fishermen's Association coordinator at sea Greg Palmer said the stocks looked to be in good shape, although it didn't appear that way when fishers first started commercial fishing before Christmas.
"From what appeared to be a slow start to the season, it turned out to be a very successful end to the pre-Christmas run," he said.
"The fishery showed its true dynamics and produced the best catch for two years."
Mr Palmer said the weather had been "topsy turvey", with only a few calm nights during fishing trips in November and December.
He said the December catch was positive with 467 tonnes of prawn caught, and in total the fleet had fished for 20 nights so far this season.
Six vessels will conduct a stock survey during February to prepare the fishing fleet for its next commercial fishing trip.
"These results will indicate current stock levels and how well the recruitment went from last year's spawning," he said.
"There will be no commercial fishing by the whole fleet until the dark of the moon in March around the 12th."
