Perhaps that’s because they know that the super trawler operators are apparently considering making an application to overturn a ban on fishing Australian waters.

The massive fishing factory ship would target their cousins the jack mackerel in southern ocean waters.

The Narooma News on Tuesday was sent in this photo by John Perkins from South Durras - they appear to be yakkas or yellowtail scad as well as the odd slimy mackerel.

The fish washed up on Monday and were still flopping around when John took the photo and apparently did not swim away when flicked back into the surf.

The Department of Primary Industries (DPI) fisheries officers have investigated the incident, after fish were found washed up at South Durras Beach.

A DPI spokesperson said it was a natural occurrence and the status of the lake entrance did not appear to have influenced this event.

“The fish appeared alive and healthy when they were first found on the beach, because the photos indicate marks in the sand where the fish have flapped, indicating they were alive,” the spokesperson said.

“Fish sometimes get washed up on the beach like this during big seas, which were experienced yesterday.

“The swell is gouging the beach today and as a result, the fish are no longer on the beach. It is likely they were washed away last night by the big high tide.”

Yakkas and slimy mackerel are common inshore species on the Far South Coast often caught off piers and wharves.

These bait fish are common targets of fishermen, recreational and professional, who use them for live bait for species from kingfish to marlin.

They are also the main species that would be targeted by the super trawler that is supposedly making moves to overturn a ban on it fishing for small pelagics in Australian waters.

The ABC science program Catalyst recently interviewed scientists from the very well-respected South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI) who noted that unlike pilchards, jack mackerel are much longer lived species vulnerable to overfishing.

“Take jack mackerel, for example,” scientist Associate Professor Tim Ward told the science program. “Their populations are also estimated using egg surveys, but the last time that happened was more than 10 years ago, in 2002.”

Catalyst noted that unlike sardines, jack mackerel grow to half a metre in length and live for 17 years and don't really fit the description of a small pelagic fish.

Dr Daniel Pauly noted: “To call it a 'small pelagic' is actually an error. They are longer-lived, they will react more slowly, they will be more quickly reduced in biomass if you fish them hard and they will not bounce back the way typical small pelagic, like sardine and anchovies and so on, do.”

Back in NSW, the Department of Primary Industries says any fisheries incidents can be reported to the Fishers Watch Phoneline on 1800 043 536.