Fumunda Marine and the Queensland Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries (DPI&F) are working together to reduce the number of migrating whales caught in shark nets along the east coast of Australia.

Fumunda Director James Turner said he was very excited that the Queensland DPI&F had commissioned Fumunda to improve existing acoustic alarm devices (pingers), which alert whales to the presence of nets used in shark control programmes.

Fumunda has developed pingers to alert porpoises and dolphins to the presence of fishing nets and is now in the design and engineering phase of a new whale pinger.

“Pingers emit a low frequency signal that alert porpoises, dolphins and whales to the presence of commercial fishing equipment, thereby helping to ensure that interactions between the set fishing gear and marine mammals are avoided,” Mr Turner explained.

The new pingers have been designed to operate at a very low frequency known to be audible to whales. The new pingers will be significantly more powerful than the existing models. The new Fumunda low frequency pinger will be significantly smaller and lighter than the existing pinger technology, making handling and fitting to the nets much easier.

They will be made using high quality internal components and long-lasting replaceable batteries, ensuring reliable performance.

“Approximately 12,000 whales travel up and down the east coast of Australia each year, and the team at Fumunda, like the New South Wales and Queensland Departments of Primary Industries want to reduce the number of incidental entanglements,” Mr Turner said.

Mr Turner said that in addition to the Queensland DPI&F commission, the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries had made enquiries with a view to ordering the new pingers.