The primary legislation under which marine invertebrates can be protected and conserved varies widely among different jurisdictions. For instance, it may fall into one (or more) of the following categories:

• Threatened species – legislation whose express purpose is to allow for the listing of threatened species[180] (e.g., as vulnerable, endangered, presumed extinct, etc); some also allows for the listing of threatened populations, ecological communities and / or threatening processes. Marine invertebrates are eligible for listing under most Commonwealth and State threatened species legislation (see below), though in few cases have any marine invertebrates actually been listed.

• Parks and reserves – legislation that allows for the declaration of protected areas such as parks and reserves. In some cases, this includes marine areas, in other cases (e.g., NSW) there is separate marine legislation. For instance, in South Australia, there is no dedicated threatened species legislation, and although some species of “wildlife” can be protected under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972, invertebrates are not classified as “wildlife” under this Act.

• Fisheries – fisheries legislation, which has been enacted in all jurisdictions, generally contains provisions relating to the management of harvested species, which may be relevant to harvested marine invertebrates. It may also be used to prohibit the collection of protected species, although this rarely occurs for marine invertebrates, and to declare various types of aquatic reserves. In some cases (e.g., NSW), threatened species provisions for aquatic organisms are also contained in the fisheries legislation.

• Definitions employed in legislation need to be carefully framed to best achieve the desired conservation outcome. Very broad definitions of animals relating to particular conservation measures (total ban on collecting, bag limits etc.) can be impossible to enforce and may have little no biological rationale[181].

• Recreational activities - There is often an inconsistent approach to marine conservation. For example recreational fishing may be allowed in marine reserves but there are blanket bans on harvesting or collecting even super-abundant species, or the dead remains of various marine invertebrates (shells, echinoderm tests, etc.).

• More flexible approaches to collecting and harvesting are required. For example, the imposition of bag limits for specific taxa as an alternative strategy to blanket bans;

• Collecting (of shells[182] etc.) by responsible collectors[183], interested children etc. should be encouraged, rather than discouraged, as a means of gaining interest in invertebrates and as a potential source of valuable information.