Entanglement of large baleen whales, including the right (Eubalaena glacialis), fin (Balaenoptera physalus), sei (Balaenoptera borealis), Bryde’s (Balaenoptera brydei), minke (Balaenoptera acutorostrata), and humpback (Megaptera novaeangliae) in fixed fishing gear (e.g. pot and gillnet) is a frequent occurrence along the east coast of the United States and Canada. For right and humpback whales, which have detailed […]
September 2024
FAO publishes Technical Guidelines on Marine Mammal Bycatch | Consortium for Wildlife Bycatch Reduction
Consortium Director Tim Werner was one of the lead contributors to the “Guidelines to prevent and reduce bycatch of marine mammals in capture fisheries”, recently published by the FAO. The technical guidelines can be accessed via this link: http://www.fao.org/3/cb2887en/cb2887en.pdf. This document received the input of many experts in marine mammal bycatch reduction and fisheries, who provided their expertise during […]
Setting baited hooks by stealth (underwater) can prevent the incidental mortality of albatrosses and petrels in pelagic longline fisheries | Consortium for Wildlife Bycatch Reduction
Experiments on the use of sea bird mitigation methods were conducted aboard Uruguayan pelagic longliners between 2010 and 2012. Experiments looked at the difference between setting bait at the sea surface and setting baits underwater. The researchers recorded the abundance of sea birds following the vessel and incidences of attacks on bait and mortality. When […]
Will harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) habituate to pingers? | Consortium for Wildlife Bycatch Reduction
A field test was conducted to test whether harbor porpoises habitutate to pingers over time. Echolocation and movements were monitored around a mooring equipped with a pinger (Dukane Netmark 1000) for 3 months. Initial displacement was 208 m from the pinger, but it diminished by 50% within 4 days. Echolocation rate and occurrence were significantly […]
Efficiency of bycatch reduction devices in small otter trawls used in the Florida shrimp fishery | Consortium for Wildlife Bycatch Reduction
The extended mesh funnel (EMF) and Florida fisheye (FFE) bycatch reduction devices (BRD) were evaluated in otter trawls with three different sized openings (circumference = 14 m, 17 m, and 20 m). The mean ratio of finfish bycatch to shrimp in nets equipped with BRD’s was substantially lower but not significantly different than the ratios […]
Catch comparison trials of the flip flap netting grid trawl | Consortium for Wildlife Bycatch Reduction
At sea trials were conducted comparing the catch composition and weight of standard Nephrops scraper trawls and a new trawl termed the Flip Flap netting Grid trawl (FFG). The FFG includes a 160 mm mesh size netting in the top wing and top sheet netting panels, flip-flap netting grid, and fish outlet hole and 200 […]
Bycatch and release of pelagic megafauna in industrial trawler fisheries off Northwest Africa | Consortium for Wildlife Bycatch Reduction
The addition of a filter grid (inclined at ca. 20 degrees) that leads to an escape tunnel in trawl nets allowed 100% of rays and turtles to escape, 75% of manta rays, 40% of billfish and between 20-75% of sharks to escape.