The tide is turning for endangered albatrosses in their fight for survival on the high seas.
Birdlife International reports that the loss of millions of these magnificent seabirds in longline fishing grounds is being checked by the increasing use of bird-friendly fishing techniques.
It is a dramatic turn-around from a situation which once saw one albatross being killed every five minutes as bycatch in trawler operations.
The longline fishing industry and governments responsible for long-distance fleets are finally coming on board to ensure crews give their fellow ocean travellers the respect they deserve, principally by using gear that minimises harm to the seabirds.
The main cause of albatross deaths has been the longline fishing techniques which snare albatrosses on baited hooks, dragging them under the waves, although they are also killed on their island breeding grounds by introduced predators like rats, and others die from ingesting plastics.
The seabird slaughter emerged 30 years ago when it was discovered that around 40,000 shy albatrosses were being killed annually by Japanese trawlers operating off Tasmania.
It was soon established that 19 of the world’s 22 albatross species were threated globally and urgent action was required.
Conservation measures were made difficult because of the remote ocean environments in which both the albatrosses and the distant-water fishing fleets were located.
A major step has been to identify exactly where albatrosses interact with the fishing fleets. In one project, 250 wandering albatrosses have been fitted with satellite tracking devices to plot their movements, and their deaths. At the same time radio transmissions from trawler fleets are being monitored to see if they correspond with where the albatrosses are gathered.
The task force, established by Birdlife International in 2000, works onshore with governments, communities and fishing companies and, offshore, aboard the trawlers themselves. Its instructors demonstrate simple, effective ways to save albatrosses.
Longlines can be set at night, when seabirds are less active, and weights added to sink hooks out of seabirds’ reach. Colourful bird-scaring devices are also used in danger zones where lines are hauled in, reducing collisions and entanglement with cables.
All these measures can also reduce the huge cost of damaged fishing gear.
Birdlife International reports the task force has been able to cut albatross losses by up to 80 per cent in targeted fisheries, with bycatch off South Africa cut from 10,000 birds a year to just 200. The organisation concedes, though, there is some distance to go to “win fishermen’s hearts” and eliminate bycatch worldwide.
Although the shy albatross, which breeds exclusively on Tasmanian islands, alerted the world to the seabird crisis, the wandering albatross is regarded as the sentinel species of the oceans. It is the largest flying bird with a wingspan of 3.5 metres and birds breeding from as far apart as the Falkland Islands and New Zealand are commonly seen in Tasmanian waters.