Sustainable Fishing Services

Dr Ian Knuckey – Director

Dr Ian Knuckey provides expert research advice and consulting services to encourage and promote sustainable fishing practices to the commercial fishing industry within Australia. 

With a PhD in fisheries population dynamics, BSc (Hons) in Marine Ecology and over twenty years of experience; Dr Knuckey has extensive knowledge and is an expert within the industry.

The Fishwell Pty Ltd team delivers high quality and accurate scientific publications, comprehensive reports, research and consulting proposals to the commercial fishing industry, commonwealth and state government departments, research and management organisations, funding bodies and the broader fishing community.

Dr Knuckey is a specialist in the industry and offers expertise In a variety of areas, in particular; temperate and tropical fisheries, invertebrate fisheries and both inshore and deepwater scalefish and shark fisheries.

Dr Knuckey has implemented the successful Integrated Scientific Monitoring Programs for the South East Fishery and Great Australian Bight fisheries and is the Principal Investigator of a number of research projects including, Investigation of the use of modified trawl gear to reduce bycatch levels in these fisheries; Introducing an industry-based fishery independent survey into the SEF; Development of electronic logbooks for fishing vessels; and, Forming an Australian-wide company to utilise through-chain production of seafood wastes.

Dr Paul McShane – Marine Bioligist

Dr Paul McShane is a marine biologist with more than 40 years of professional experience including senior research management roles in Victoria, New Zealand, South Australia and Tasmania.

He is Principal of Global Marine Resource Management Pty Ltd, a consultancy company providing advice on assessment and management of living marine resources.  During his career, he has led and managed interdisciplinary research and development projects in Australia, Asia (Indonesia, Vietnam, South Asia) and the Middle East (UAE).

Dr McShane brings capability in marine and coastal resource assessment and management particularly fisheries and aquaculture with more than 100 peer-reviewed publications. In his capacity as a fisheries scientist, Dr McShane is Chair of the South East Resource Assessment Group (SERAG), a Scientific Member of the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery Resource Assessment Group (SESSFRAG) and Research Member of the South East Management Advisory Committee (SEMAC) responsive to the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA).

He is a former Director of the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC) and has held non-executive director positions on various seafood industry boards and committees.  Dr McShane is currently an adjunct Professor of Fisheries and Aquaculture at James Cook University.

Matt Koopman – Scientist

Matt Koopman has more than 25 years experience working with recreational and commercial fisheries around Australia and overseas. 

He has a PhD in fisheries biology and has extensive experience working with fisheries data and data collection systems from both government and non-government organisations. He worked for three years as the data scientist for various resource assessment groups, which involved the collation and presentation of fisheries data from observer programs.

Matt has undertaken fisheries survey design and implementation in numerous fisheries including the Bass Strait Central Zone Scallop Fishery, Northern snapper fisheries and sea cucumber fisheries in Queensland and the Northern Territory.

He has 15 years  experience with R programming language and QGIS to create high quality, reproducible data summaries (graphs, maps and tables) for mangers, scientists and fishers. His engagements within Commonwealth fisheries have led to the establishment of strong partnerships with commercial fishers and fisheries managers.

Bryce Nurnaitis – Research Assistant & Scientific Observer

Since completing a Bachelor of Marine Science at Deakin University in 2023, Bryce has gained valuable hands-on experience both aboard fishing vessels and through various onshore research projects. 

During his work with Fishwell, Bryce has worked as a fishery observer on the Queensland Gulf of Carpentaria Developmental Fin Fish Trawl Fishery, the 2024 Eastern Zone Orange Roughy Survey and on trials of a modified dropline method for targeting Blue-Eye Trevalla in Gulper Shark Closures off eastern Tasmania.  He has also contributed to several significant fieldwork initiatives, including the 2024 Bass Strait Survey and the 2024 QLD Sandfish Survey and a biomass survey for Burrowing Blackfish at Lizard Island.

Additionally, Bryce serves as a liaison for the FishSOOP ocean monitoring program (a collaboration between UNSW, IMOS and Fishwell), working closely with fishermen to ensure their temperature-depth gear is up to date and functioning properly. Bryce also provides support for OLRAC electronic logbook software for Australian users. 

Born and raised by the sea, Bryce excels in fieldwork which has allowed him to combine his love for the ocean with meaningful contributions to its sustainability and conservation efforts. 

Other qualifications include onboard ship safety certifications, first aid/CPR/O2 training, and he is currently developing his diving certifications.