Effective? Proven? Practical? Safe? Mitigation techniques reviewed

Swimmer, Zollett & Gutierrez (2021) review bycatch mitigation techniques for longline and purse seine tuna fisheries, evaluating them against four criteria to provide guidance on the most successful measures to prevent capture of non-target species in fishing gear or facilitate alive post-capture release. They define their criteria as follows:

  1. Effective - minimize bycatch with limited or no impact on target species catch
  2. Proven - have been proven through at-sea experimental research
  3. Practical - are practical, affordable, and easy to use, and
  4. Safe - do not risk the safety of the fishing vessel crew or the bycaught animals.

Protected and threatened species of interest include cetaceans, sea turtles, seabirds, sharks, and istiophorid billfishes. Results of the comprehensive meta-analysis are presented by gear type and taxon. While focusing on bycatch mitigation practices that meet criteria for being effective, proven, practical, and safe, the study also considers the various trade-offs that employing any measure entails, such as target catch retention and post-interaction survival rates.

 

Mitigation measures for cetaceans, sea turtles, seabirds, sharks, and billfish in pelagic longline gear.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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