{"id":1692,"date":"2017-11-20T18:41:48","date_gmt":"2017-11-20T18:41:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/gemmlab\/?p=1692"},"modified":"2018-09-22T21:23:47","modified_gmt":"2018-09-22T21:23:47","slug":"albatross-bycatch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/gemmlab\/2017\/11\/20\/albatross-bycatch\/","title":{"rendered":"Meeting to disentangle factors influencing albatross bycatch in the deep-set Hawaii Longline Fishery"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Rachael Orben PhD., <\/strong>Research Associate in the Seabird Oceanography Lab and GEMM Lab<\/strong><\/p>\n

Seabird bycatch is a global problem (e.g. Anderson et al 2011<\/a>). Humans like eating fish and seabirds do too. Fishing vessels provide a food source for seabirds through discards, bait, and target fish. Different types of fishing gear pose different risks for seabirds. The good news is there are things that we can do to decrease these risks.<\/p>\n

Albatrosses and petrels are particularly vulnerable to being hooked by longlines as the baited hooks are set overboard. Albatrosses and petrels are long lived (e.g.,\u00a0Wisdom the 65-year-old Laysan Albatross<\/a>) and have a limited number of off-spring. Therefore fishery mortalities can have devastating impacts on populations if left unchecked. Currently all 22 species of albatrosses have IUCN<\/a> statuses ranging from Near Threatened to Critically Endangered.<\/p>\n

North Pacific Albatrosses<\/h5>\n