Seven Melbournians are facing punishment after fisheries officers discovered them with under-size abalone in two separate incidents between Apollo Bay and Lorne.
Officers caught a husband and wife from North Melbourne and a man from East Bentleigh with 155 abalone which they caught at Grey River.
Only 26 were the appropriate size.
Officers allege the trio hid the abalone in several bags which had been secreted among rocks when officers discovered them on Thursday
night.
The offenders will appear in Colac Magistrates Court facing a variety of offences, including taking abalone during the closed season, taking more than twice the catch limit for abalone and using commercial fishing equipment to take undersize abalone.
In another incident, Apollo Bay fisheries officers caught a group of four men from Melbourne at Sugarloaf, east of Apollo Bay.
Officers found the men with 77 abalone, 74 of which were undersize.
Officers charged two of the men with summons and issued the other two with infringement
notices.
Fisheries Victoria’s operations manager for Western Victoria, Iain Bruce said abalone and other shellfish were important natural resources which were under increasing pressure from over-fishing.
“Fisheries officers are determined to apprehend anyone breaking these laws,” he said.