Keep Albatrosses Off the Hook
Two-thirds of the world’s 22 albatross species are globally threatened. Their greatest threat is not what nature can throw at them, but human activities.
For millions of years, albatrosses have mastered the oceans, travelled thousands of miles and endured the fiercest storms to navigate endless horizons.
Today, two-thirds of the world’s 22 albatross species are globally threatened. Their greatest threat is not what nature can throw at them, but human activities.
Every year, up to 100,000 albatrosses are unintentionally killed by equipment used in commercial fisheries – that’s one every five minutes.
These incredible birds should not be dying this way as human needs can be met without sacrificing the natural world.
We know it’s possible because in the last two decades, our Albatross Task Force (ATF) have worked tirelessly with policy makers and fishing crews on simple and cheap ways to save albatrosses with very little effort.
The results speak for themselves:
At-sea trials and implementation of bycatch mitigation measures in trawl and longline fisheries have led to astounding bycatch reductions. 98% fewer birds have been killed in the Namibian demersal longline fishery, and there’s been a 99% reduction in albatross bycatch in the South African trawl fleet – saving tens of thousands of seabirds each year
Bycatch is a big threat to albatrosses but what is it?
Albatrosses mainly feed on squid and fish at the surface of the water. But bait on long fishing lines or discarded fish around boats is pretty tempting too.
When they try to grab an easy meal, many become caught by baited hooks and drown, while others are fatally struck by the cables that tow nets. This is known as bycatch and is the biggest marine threat to albatrosses globally.
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