Guidelines to reduce the impact of drifting fish aggregating devices on sea turtles

Scientific assessments of the impact of tropical tuna purse seine fishery on sea turtle populations indicate historically low turtle bycatch rates. This conception has been derived from direct capture or interaction of sea turtles with purse seine gear, where turtles have been hauled on board with targeted schools of tunas. However, the massive increase in the use of drifting Fish Aggregating Devices (FADs) by the tropical tuna purse seine fishery worldwide raises concerns about potential impacts on sea turtles. The two main concerns are related to the potential entanglement of sea turtles on FAD structures (i.e., ghost-fishing issues) and the potential impact of these structures when lost or abandoned on sea turtle essential habitats. Therefore, this document presents a series of guidelines to reduce the impact of FADs on sea turtles. These guidelines resulted from workshops between fishers and scientists conducted within a Pacificwide project led by the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation in partnership with the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, The Pacific Community, and Hawaii Pacific University.