Conservationists say cherished creatures such as whales, dolphins and seabirds are being killed in large numbers by fishing tackle
Thousands of Britain’s most charismatic and protected marine wildlife, including whales, porpoises, dolphins, seals and seabirds are being killed as “collateral damage” by fishing vessels every year, according to the first-ever analysis of bycatch data.
The analysis, by the Wildlife and Countryside Link, a coalition of voluntary conservation groups, reveals the devastating toll bycatch, the accidental capture and killing of non-target species by fishing vessels, is having on marine species.
The “shocking” scale of annual deaths in the report, Hidden in the haul: The true scale of bycatch is likely to be “the tip of the iceberg”, it said, as only a fraction of the UK fishing fleet monitor bycatch. Only 0.05% of dredging vessels monitor this. They, like the bottom trawlers exposed in the recent David Attenborough film Oceans, drag heavy gear across the sea floor and are known for doing damage to marine life on the sea bed. Non-UK vessels operating in UK waters were not included in the data.
The deaths estimated in the report, which were extrapolated from datasets on bycatch and discard numbers, were more than 1,000 harbour porpoises and common dolphins killed annually, 10,000 seabirds and 500 seals. Six humpback whales and 30 minke whales were also found dead in Scottish creel ropes. Over 1,000 endangered Atlantic salmon and 120 tonnes of protected sharks, skates and rays are also caught and killed as bycatch by commercial fishing vessel every year.
In English waters, the use of gillnets, a type of static net that hangs like a curtain in the water, is the highest risk for seabird bycatch. Birds including puffins, gannets and razorbills get caught and drown when they dive for food. Gillnets cause 400,000 seabird deaths globally, according to research by BirdLife International.
[Richard Benwell, the chief executive of Wildlife and Countryside Link] said: “The government mustn’t let these terrible losses continue. To protect marine wildlife, Ministers must finally deliver strong bycatch action plans, backed by strict mandatory monitoring and enforcement, before more wildlife is pushed closer to extinction.”
Cetaceans dying as bycatch is a key reason the UK is failing to meet its legal obligations to achieve good environmental status in some British seas, the report found.
Successive governments have failed to address this “silent and largely unseen” crisis, [Ruth Williams, head of marine conservation at the Wildlife Trusts] said.
The coalition is also calling on the government to require remote electronic monitoring on all fishing vessels operating in English waters, inclupding small vessels under 10 metres that it said are responsible for a large proportion of bycatch.
