Seabird Bycatch Mitigation in Fisheries Systems
Summary
Bycatch of seabirds in commercial fishing poses a significant threat to marine avifauna, contributing to population declines of albatrosses, petrels and other vulnerable species worldwide. Mitigation approaches seek to reduce incidental captures through modifications to fishing gear, operational practices and temporal or spatial closures. Key strategies include the deployment of weighted branch lines and bird-scaring lines in longline fisheries, net illumination or acoustic deterrents in gillnet operations, and the management of offal and discards to reduce vessel attendance by scavenging birds. Recent advances in biologging and remote sensing allow finer resolution mapping of overlap between seabird foraging distributions and fishing effort, enabling identification of bycatch hotspots and targeted implementation of measures. Effective mitigation requires coordination among fishers, observers and regulatory agencies and must be tailored to regional fleets and seabird assemblages. Evidence indicates that combining technical interventions with robust monitoring and compliance can achieve substantial reductions in bycatch mortality and support the recovery of threatened seabird populations on a global scale.
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Seabird Bycatch Mitigation in Fisheries Systems publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in seabird bycatch mitigation in fisheries systems across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Bycatch: Incidental capture of non-target species during fishing operations.
Pelagic longline: A fishing method deploying baited hooks along a suspended mainline in open water targeting species such as tuna and swordfish.
Gillnet: A wall of netting that entangles fish and other animals by their gills as they attempt to swim through.
Biologging: The use of animal-borne devices to record movement, behaviour and environmental parameters for research purposes.
Hotspot: A geographic area where high overlap occurs between seabird foraging and fishing activities, indicating elevated bycatch risk.
References
- Decadal increase in vessel interactions by a scavenging pelagic seabird across the North Atlantic. Current Biology (2023).
- Spatial and temporal variations in seabird bycatch: Incidental bycatch in the Norwegian coastal gillnet-fishery. PLOS ONE (2019).
- Reducing seabird bycatch in the Hawaii longline tuna fishery. Endangered Species Research (2008).
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