Save The Albatross

Longline fishing is a major threat for many seabird species of the southern hemisphere. Every year, more than 100,000 albatrosses and an additional 200,000 other seabirds drown as a result of longline fishing. BirdLife International has calculated that on average one albatross is drowning every five minutes.

19 of the 22 albatross species are now globally threathened with extinction.

On this page:

What is longlinging?
Why are albatrosses vulnerable?
BirdLife International's Save The Albatross campaign
ACAP brings protection one step closer
Pirate Fishing
How can you help?
More information?

What is longlinging?

Rich fishing grounds are often the feeding grounds of seabirds too. Behind their vessel, fishermen set long lines, often more than 100 km in lenght, with thousands of baited hooks are attached to it.

Albatrosses and storm petrels are scavengers, that try to catch some of the bait. Some albatrosses and storm petrels even learnt to follow these fishing boats, and by doing so are even more at risk of being killed on a hook.

Why are albatrosses vulnerable?

Albatrosses and storm petrels belong to the same family of tubenoses (Procellariformes). They are ocean birds that have a lot in common, including biology and behaviour, so both are victim of longline fishing. Under natural circumstances these birds may grow very old, the bigger species can live up to sixty years or more.

Low reproduction rate
Albatrosses and storm petrels lay only one single egg per year. Five albatross species are such long breeders, that they only breed once every two years. In all species, both parents are needed to raise their chick. In case one parent dies, the other parent will have to leave the nest at some stage to go out foraging. This means that the chick will be lost too. The partner who survives will have to skip the next breeding season, for it takes most of these birds a couple of seasons to find a suitable new partner.

Differences in distribution
Research on birds tagged with a satellite device has shown that albatross males and females do not always feed in the same waters. Within a population this may skew the male-female ratio, because one of the sexes is feeding in a region where longlining is more frequent, thus more victims, than in the region where the other sexe is foraging. Distribution patters also vary according to the phase within the breeding cyclus. Another difference exists between breeders and non-breeders. Many young non-breeding birds forage far away from the colony they were born and may enter waters were longlining is practiced. Combined, these factors result in a colony that produces less offspring.

Different feeding habits
Although nearly all species of seabirds have been victim of longlining, they are not all equally vulnerable. Some bird species tend to follow ships, others stay away from them. There are also species of both albatrosses and storm petrels that can dive quite deep and that are able to follow baited hooks when they are sinking into the water. As a result, these birds end up being caught on hooks more often than birds that cannot dive.

BirdLife International's Save The Albatross campaign

One of the worlwide campaigns let by BirdLife International is the one titled 'Save the Albatross', a campaign supported by many national bird conservation organisations. BirdLife aims at convincing governments of countries that practice longlining to take measures to prevent bycatch of albatrosses and other seabirds. BirdLife collaborates with other fishery and governmental organisations to prevent drowing of seabirds on fishing hooks. A few of the most effective measures are:

Set baited hooks during the night rather than during daytime;
Attach a line of plastic streamers behind the ship, which scares seabirds away from the hooks;
Use an underwater tube through which the lines submerge , so that the line goes into the water out of reach of the birds;
Attach a weight to the long line so the bait sinks more rapidly;
Using thawed bait as it sinks more quickly than frozen bait that is used commonly.

BirdLife International is also actively involved in:

Seabird census - to determine if measures are effective.
Monitoring on board of fishing vessels to ensure measures are applied, to count seabird victims, and to assist and advice fishermen;
Research on distribution and behaviour of seabirds - to understand where and when seabirds are running risks;
To set up Plans of Action for the different regions.
Education of fishing organisations and the public. This includes the promotion of fish products that were caught in a sustainable way, and which carry the MSC-logo.

ACAP brings protection one step closer

The Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACAP) entered into force on 1 February 2004. ACAP is a binding international treaty that is part of the Bonn Convention. Seven governments (Australia, New Zealand, Ecuador, Spain, South Africa, Great Britain and Argentina) have ratified and signed the convention. Another four countries (Brazil, Chile, France and Peru) have shown interest to also become partners.

Participation of France and Great Britain is crucial since these two countries own important seabird islands on the southern hemisphere. As an example, no less than 71% of the world's population of Black-browed Albatrosses breed on the Falkland Islands. Early 2006, the archipel of Tristan da Cunha (UK) also signed up to the treaty. These islands are not only home of millions of petrels, but also the rare Spectacled Petrel (Procellaria conspicillata) with a total population probably not exceeding 9,000 breeding pairs on the nearly island of Inaccessible, and the Tristan Albatross (Diomedea dabbenena), estimated at 1500-2400 pairs.

Pirate Fishing

It is easier to reach agreements with official bodies than with unregulated fisheries. In the last ten years this type of fishing has reached alarming dimensions, creating additional problems. Current loopholes in international law allow a fleet of more than 1,000 large-scale fishing vessels to register under flags of convenience (FOC). The boats are owned in one country but registered in another (often Taiwan, Spain, Panama, Singapore, South Corea, Japan, China and Equatorial Ginea), thus avoiding fisheries regulations.

These Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported (IUU) or "Pirate" fishing vessels operate with total disregard for the number of seabirds they kill. Illegal catch may be up to 30% for some fish species. At least half of the Patagonian Toothfish sold on the market originates from illegal fishing, of which the albatrosses are victims

How can you help?

If you care about seabirds, you can safely donate via BirdLife's special website www.savethealbatross.net. (Click on Make A Donation).
Do not buy tunafish or other fish species that are caught using longlines that kill albatrosses and other birds and sea mammals. More information on 'good fish' can be found the following links:
- www.seafoodchoices.org - worldwide, international alliance
- www.fishonline.org - for United Kingdom
- www.thefishlist.org - for North America
- www.forestandbird.org.nz - for New Zealand
- www.sustainablefishery.org - for North America
These organisations focus on fish areas where no albatrosses may live, but where other petrels feed.

More information?

If you wish to, I can present a lecture on this topic for schools, companies and organisations. Refer to the page LEXsample lectures for information.

On the following websites you can find more information on seabird conservation:

Click here to open BirdLife's new :: Save The Albatross :: website

Visit the new RSPB/BirdLife Save the Albatross web site at www.savethealbatross.net

	Low reproduction rate Albatrosses and storm petrels lay only one single egg per year. Five albatross species are such long breeders, that they only breed once every two years. In all species, both parents are needed to raise their chick. In case one parent dies, the other parent will have to leave the nest at some stage to go out foraging. This means that the chick will be lost too. The partner who survives will have to skip the next breeding season, for it takes most of these birds a couple of seasons to find a suitable new partner.
	Differences in distribution Research on birds tagged with a satellite device has shown that albatross males and females do not always feed in the same waters. Within a population this may skew the male-female ratio, because one of the sexes is feeding in a region where longlining is more frequent, thus more victims, than in the region where the other sexe is foraging. Distribution patters also vary according to the phase within the breeding cyclus. Another difference exists between breeders and non-breeders. Many young non-breeding birds forage far away from the colony they were born and may enter waters were longlining is practiced. Combined, these factors result in a colony that produces less offspring.
	Different feeding habits Although nearly all species of seabirds have been victim of longlining, they are not all equally vulnerable. Some bird species tend to follow ships, others stay away from them. There are also species of both albatrosses and storm petrels that can dive quite deep and that are able to follow baited hooks when they are sinking into the water. As a result, these birds end up being caught on hooks more often than birds that cannot dive.