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Fisheries managers are becoming increasingly aware of the need to quantify all forms of harvest, including that by recreational fishers. This need has been driven by both a growing recognition of the potential impact that noncommercial fishers can have on exploited resources and the requirement to allocate catch limits between different sectors of the wider fishing community in many jurisdictions. Marine recreational fishers are rarely required to report any of their activity, and some form of survey technique is usually required to estimate levels of recreational catch and effort. In this review, we describe and discuss studies that have attempted to estimate the nature and extent of recreational harvests of marine fishes in New Zealand and Australia over the past 20 years. We compare studies

The COVID-19 global pandemic and subsequent implementation of measures to reduce contact within the community have affected fisheries worldwide, yet few studies have reported the impacts on recreational fisheries. This study investigates boat-based recreational fishing in Western Australia from March to August 2020, where COVID-19 measures relevant to recreational fishers included various travel restrictions, and social and physical distancing measures. Information from surveys of licensed recreational fishers and fisheries compliance officers, and camera footage from key boat ramps is presented. A lower proportion of Perth metropolitan fishers went fishing compared with regional fishers. Metropolitan fishers also reported fewer days fished and lower participation in demersal and shore-based line fishing than regional fishers. In contrast, compliance officers observed more fishing activity in both metropolitan and regional locations. Fishing plans were mostly affected by travel restrictions with more metropolitan fishers affected compared with regional fishers. Daily recreational vessel retrievals at key boat ramps varied between locations, with metropolitan fishers initially unable to travel to regional centres. There was no decline in vessel retrievals at metropolitan boat ramps during the most rigid restrictions and northern regional boat ramps experienced substantial increases in recreational vessel activity once travel restrictions eased. Studies of this kind highlight the value of utilising established recreational fishing monitoring programmes to provide a responsive and scientific basis for policymakers to address societal behavioural changes associated with atypical events such as COVID-19.

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Catch sharing among fishing sectors requires credible data for decision‐making, allocation and management. Integrated Fisheries Management in Western Australia formally allocates allowable catch for Western Rock Lobster (WRL) (Panulirus cygnus) with 95% commercial and 5% recreational; Roe's abalone (Haliotis roei) with 36 t commercial and 40 t recreational; and West Coast Demersal Scalefish (WCDS) with 64% commercial and 36% recreational. While commercial catch is obtained from statutory returns, estimates of recreational catches from surveys depend upon spatial and temporal scales of the resource and fishing activity. WRL is a single‐species, licensed recreational fishery operating across large spatial and temporal scales. Mail surveys supplemented with occasional phone‐recall surveys provide cost‐effective monitoring. Roe's abalone is a single‐species, licensed recreational fishery operating over restricted spatial and temporal scales appropriate for aerial‐access surveys. The WCDS recreational fishery targets multiple species across large spatial and temporal scales. The introduction of charter logbooks and a Recreational Fishing from Boat Licence has provided the basis for monitoring charter and private boat‐based recreational fishing. Monitoring allocations is ongoing, with routine surveys required to provide catch estimates with a known confidence. This study highlights the application and importance of surveys in providing timely and accurate data for formal catch sharing.