Reduce seabird bycatch by releasing offal overboard when setting longlines
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Overall effectiveness category Likely to be beneficial
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Number of studies: 2
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Effectiveness
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Harms
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Supporting evidence from individual studies
A replicated and controlled study in the South Atlantic in February 1994 (Cherel et al. 1996) found that piping offal overboard whilst setting longlines greatly reduced the number of birds caught on 69 line sets, from 33 birds to three, equivalent to a decrease from 0.49 to 0.01 birds/1000 hooks. Caught birds were white-chinned petrels Procellaria aequinoctialis, and two grey-headed albatross Thalassarche chrysostoma (formerly Diomedea chrysostoma). There was a corresponding significant decrease in the rate of bird attacks on the bait for all species except wandering albatross D. exulans (92% decrease for black-browed albatross T. melanophris (formerly D. melanophris), 96% for grey-headed albatross and 96% for white-chinned petrel). Vessels were fishing for Patagonian toothfish Dissostichus eleginoides around South Georgia and Kerguelen Islands.
Study and other actions testedA replicated, controlled study in the sub-Antarctic Indian Ocean in 1994-7 (Weimerskirch et al. 2000) found that significantly fewer white-chinned petrels Procellaria aequinoctialis were caught on longlines when offal was released over the side of the boat as lines were being set (0.46 birds/1,000 hooks caught when offal was released vs. 1.00 birds/1,000 hooks with no release, total of 524 lines studied). There were no significant changes in other species caught, possibly due to smaller sample sizes. The authors caution that significantly more birds followed fishing boats when they released offal (significant increases for six of ten species) and the practice may therefore enforce long-term associations between fishing boats and food. This study is also discussed in ‘Set longlines at night to reduce seabird bycatch’ and ‘Use streamer lines to reduce seabird bycatch on longlines’.
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This Action forms part of the Action Synopsis:
Bird Conservation
Bird Conservation - Published 2013
Bird Synopsis