Barramundi got their name from the Aboriginals, it means “large-scaled river fish”. Barramundi belong to the Sea Perch family. They have a distinct pointed head, concave forehead, large jaw and rounded tail fin (Government of Western Australia, 2013). They have two dorsal fins, one with seven or …show more content…
Healthy barramundi can grow up to approximately 180cm in length and weigh up to 60kg but evidence of them being caught at this size is scarce. Most commonly however, the average length of a barramundi ranges from 0.6m – 1.2m. Barramundi inhabit both salt and freshwater, including coastal waters, estuaries, lagoons and rivers; meaning they are demersal. They are found in clear to turbid water that usually ranges between 26 – 30 C. They are distributed throughout coastal areas from the Persian Gulf to China and southern Japan, south to Papua New Guinea and northern Australia. In Western Australia, they’re found north from Exmouth Gulf, but are most abundant in the Kimberley (Government of Western Australia, …show more content…
In the wet season, October to April, sexually mature adults migrate from freshwater estuaries to coastal estuaries and river mouths to spawn (Government of Western Australia, 2013). A large female barramundi can produce up to 40 million eggs during the spawning season, despite this high production however, less than 10 percent of the spawning survive longer than the first few months. Barramundi eggs are quick in hatching and only take 24 hours after fertilization to be ready to hatch. However, the larvae are not yet fully developed after hatching and take 2 to 3 days for their eyes and mouth to open. The first food the baby barramundi eat are Plankton. Juvenile barramundi migrates from mangrove/tidal habitats into rivers and freshwater billabongs, where over the course of three to four years into adults. At three to five years, when the fish become sexually active, they migrate back to the saltwater to spawn and the cycle begins