[OANNES Foro] Namibia's low cost, sustainable solution to seabird bycatch

Mario Cabrejos casal en infotex.com.pe
Mar Mayo 2 09:36:59 PDT 2017


Namibia's low cost, sustainable solution to seabird bycatch

 <https://news.mongabay.com/by/william-h-funk> William H. Funk

25 April 2017 

https://news.mongabay.com/2017/04/namibias-low-cost-sustainable-solution-to-
seabird-bycatch/?utm_source=Mongabay+Email+Alerts
<https://news.mongabay.com/2017/04/namibias-low-cost-sustainable-solution-to
-seabird-bycatch/?utm_source=Mongabay+Email+Alerts&utm_campaign=448602c3ec-m
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_e1ea8b5f35-448602c3ec-76256527

 

 
<https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/04/25140044/6-by
catch.jpg>
https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/04/25140044/6-byc
atch-756x512.jpg

A juvenile Black-browed albatross caught on a baited hook. The bird was
released by Albatross Task Force. Photo courtesy of the Albatross Task Force

 

Many years ago I joined my cousin, the mate on a sporting vessel, on a
fishing trip off the North Carolina coast. We were trolling baited lines in
hopes of catching striped bass.

I was in the wheelhouse when a mighty expletive arose from one of the three
paying client fishermen. Looking astern, I saw a large white bird
floundering in the sea - it had dived to take one of the towed baitfish and
now was hooked.

The client angrily jerked the rod, reeling in the struggling animal, a
Northern gannet. The bird, once on deck, was judged to have swallowed the
hook. The captain moved swiftly to cut the line and toss the doomed bird
overboard, but before he could act, I asked to examine the bird.

He handed it over, all seven struggling, kicking, flapping pounds of it. The
bird's face, so close to my own now, was striking; its desperately clacking
chisel-like bill, a slight taupe tincture at the top of the head, and
staring white eyes ringed in startling turquoise.

With the captain's help, I pried the bill open and found that the hook
hadn't been swallowed but was merely caught in the bird's throat. Using
pliers, I reached into the wildly vocalizing mouth, seized the hook and with
a quick downward motion removed it.

The captain immediately, and with unexpected delight, hurled the bird high
into the air, and we all watched silently as it departed our company at top
speed. The client who'd been so enraged at the bird's interruption of his
fishing exclaimed quietly: "Man, that was. really something."

Unfortunately, this Northern gannet was one of the few lucky victims of
bycatch. Most of the billions of animals swept up accidentally by commercial
fishermen and sport anglers every year die. But in far away Namibia, they've
found a simple solution to the problem the rest of the world could tune to
as an inspiration and example.

 
<https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/04/25140119/10-b
ycatch.jpg>
https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/04/25140119/10-by
catch-712x512.jpg

The Critically Endangered Tristan albatross (Diomedea dabbenena). Breeding
populations are restricted to Gough Island, roughly 2,000 miles southwest of
Namibia, according to the IUCN; adults fly above fishing waters several
hundred miles off Namibia's coast. A major threat to the species are
longline fisheries. Photo by michael clarke stuff Creative Commons
Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license

 


The waste of bycatch


Accidental take of marine animals by commercial fisheries is a serious but
largely unsung global problem, with a breathtaking 40 percent of the world's
marine fishing haul essentially disposed of as garbage annually. That's
roughly 63 billion pounds of unwanted wildlife - seabirds, marine mammals
and sea turtles, countless fish species, rays, and cephalopods -
inadvertently killed by swallowing baited hooks or getting entangled in
nets.

This bycatch, as it is called, suffers the fate that our Northern gannet
nearly experienced. All 63 billion pounds of marine animals, usually dead or
dying, is thrown overboard, a tremendous waste of wildlife, that until
fairly recently was casually taken for granted.

Today, some governments - with an increasing understanding of the
devastation wrought by traditional fishing methods - are beginning to
require that commercial, and sometimes sport, fishermen apply specially
designed devices to their equipment to minimize this senseless loss of life.

 
<https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/04/25140429/7-by
catch.jpg>
https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/04/25140429/7-byc
atch-768x467.jpg

An Endangered Atlantic Yellow-nosed albatross (Thalassarche chlororhynchos).
Uncounted numbers of seabirds fall victim to bycatch every year, even though
there are fairly simple and inexpensive devices available to prevent their
deaths. Photo by JJ Harrison, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike
License 3.0

 

Turtle Excluder Devices or TEDs, for example, have been required in the
United States since 1987, with the nets of shrimping boats mandated to
include a metal grid that allows shrimp to pass through while blocking the
turtles, sharks and other large animals that otherwise would be rendered as
bycatch - this allows the unwanted animals to escape unharmed through a vent
at the top or bottom of the net.

This is a promising technological achievement for a rich country that long
neglected its bycatch problem. But financially strapped nations in the
developing world have been slow to follow with bycatch prevention equipment,
or with the governmental programs needed to get it installed and accepted by
traditional, often very conservative fishermen.


Namibia leads the way in battling seabird bycatch


Little-known Namibia, in southwest Africa, could well be the nation that is
currently leading the pack in protecting seabirds, a particularly
interesting happening considering that the country was previously known as
the
<http://www.birdlife.org/africa/news/namibia-board-birdlife-end-seabird-byca
tch-world%E2%80%99s-worst-fishery> "world's worst fishery" in terms of avian
bycatch.

Namibia's fishermen are usually going after hake, a cod-like fish that
constitutes around 50 percent of the country's N$11 billion (US$845 million)
fishing industry. However, in the process, commercial fishermen have been
killing more than 30,000 seabirds as bycatch every year, including the
Tristan albatross ( <http://www.iucnredlist.org/> IUCN Red Listed as
Critically Endangered); the Atlantic yellow-nosed albatross (Endangered);
black-browed albatross and shy albatross (both Near Threatened); and the
White-chinned petrel and Cape gannet (both Vulnerable).

Albatrosses are the most highly threatened group of birds on earth, and at
Namibia's level of accidental take, the country's fishing industry was on
the way to playing a major role in helping these bird species spiral to
extinction.

 
<https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/04/25140604/3-by
catch.jpg>
https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/04/25140604/3-byc
atch-768x507.jpg

Samantha Matjila preparing to go to sea. She's found Namibia fishermen to be
receptive to the introduction of new devices to prevent bycatch. 

Photo courtesy of the Albatross Task Force

Samantha Matjila is with the  <http://nnf.org.na/> Namibia Nature
Foundation, which represents her country on the international Albatross Task
Force (ATF) composed of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Uruguay, South
Africa and Namibia. Last spring, she enrolled in a program that the ATF,
which is hosted by  <http://www.birdlife.org/> BirdLife International, had
been conducting in Namibia since 2008, but which has been ramped up since
the Namibian government introduced tight new regulations in 2014 to mandate
the use of bycatch abatement equipment on all commercial fishing vessels,
with a fine of N$500,000 (US$38,400) and up to ten years in prison awaiting
violators.

 

Matjila's job is to show fishermen how to fit the various devices used to
avoid bycatch to a boat's fishing gear. Then she accompanies the fishermen
out to sea to show them how the gadgets work in practice.

The anti-bycatch tools are quite simple and easy to use, and include
"bird-scaring" lines (also known as  <https://www.wcpfc.int/bmis/methods/25>
tori lines or streamers) that are being used by the nation's 70 trawling
vessels. Bird-scaring lines, along with line-weighting and nocturnal baiting
techniques, are used by Namibia's 12 longline fishing vessels.

 

Albatrosses, some of which can live for 60 years, are caught and drown when
they attack a baited hook before it can sink out of their diving range. The
bird-scaring lines consist of 150-meter-long ropes with brightly colored
streamers placed two or three meters apart. Line-weighting involves the
placement of additional weighted sinkers on each line so the bait sinks more
rapidly while setting a longline - a miles-long main line with as many as
2,500 baited hooks dangling from shorter lines. These lines are also set out
at night to prevent the bycatch of diurnal albatrosses.

 
<https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/04/25140655/5-by
catch.jpg>
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atch-749x512.jpg

Namibian fishermen sort through "bird scare" lines in preparation for their
use. Photo courtesy of the Albatross Task Force

 

Across the border in South Africa, where the ATF has been working with
fishermen since 2006 using the same simple techniques, the successes have
been astounding, with a
<http://www.birdlife.org/worldwide/news/high-seas-heroes-recognised-their-su
ccess> decline of over 90 percent in seabird bycatch. Similar success is
being seen in Namibia, with the ATF hoping to reach an 85-90 percent
reduction in bycatch in the near future.

 

The ATF first worked with volunteer Namibian fishermen in 2008, says
Matjila. "We didn't know what the impact of Namibian fisheries would be back
then, but we knew there was an overlap of where albatrosses roam and where
the vessels set their hooks. We also knew that simple, practical measures
existed that could reduce seabird deaths."

But what about hostile reactions to new regulations (something seen at first
when TEDs were introduced in the U.S.)? "Working with the fishermen and
sharing in discussions with them about the bycatch law, it is safe to say
that, yes, they are very accepting as they realize the benefits of the
mitigation measures introduced to them," Matjila says.

After being certified by the ATF, Namibia's commercial fishermen are
monitored aboard their vessels by agents of the National Fisheries Observer
Agency. Oliver Yates, BirdLife International's Global Albatross Task Force
Coordinator, says that today, "close to 100 percent of vessels carry
observers. This is particularly good coverage and makes Namibia a perfect
example of how this could/should work effectively," around the globe.

 
<https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/04/25140809/1-by
catch.jpg>
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atch-768x473.jpg

The Meme Itumbapo Women's Group and their handmade bird-scaring lines. Photo
courtesy of BirdLife International

 


Saving birds through a sustainable economy


It's not just seabirds that benefit from Namibia's program. According to
Matjila, "The fishing companies purchase bird-scaring lines produced by a
local organization called the 'Meme Itumbapo Women's Group.' Meme Itumbapo
is a consortium of five women, aged 33 to 47, who generate a small income
from traditional jewelry sales. These women also now manufacture and supply
the bird-scaring lines for the longline and trawling fisheries from their
headquarters 'Bird's Paradise,' in Walvis Bay, a coastal city.

"The women are funded by an independent Namibian port authority, Namport,
and we are working to make this a sustainable venture which will ensure
provision of affordable bird-scaring lines for the fishery," she says.

These hardworking and adaptable women shifted easily from stringing together
beautiful necklaces made out of seashells to supplying ten percent (so far)
of the equipment needed by Namibia's fishing fleet to save seabirds - an
example of sustainable, affordable conservation, as well as gender equality.

The ATF is now promising that, "Their hand-built, quality-assured, local,
affordable lines will be flying off the back of more and more Namibian
fishing boats in the next two years."

 
<https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/04/25140921/9-by
catch.jpg>
https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/04/25140921/9-byc
atch-768x505.jpg

A Near Threatened shy albatross (Thalassarche cauta). Photo by JJ Harrison
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License

Clemens Naomab was one of the ATF's first Namibian anti-bycatch trainers. He
tells how he earned the trust of often insular and independent fishermen:
"Namibians like to watch European football, especially the English premier
league," he explains. "Most of our relationships are developed by trading
stories about football. When you have a good relationship with the fishermen
it is easier to communicate with them."

Using the universal language of sports, Naomab broke through barriers and
earned a place alongside his fishermen buddies, who all quickly absorbed his
instructive and useful lessons and mastered the skills needed to save
seabirds. "Most of the fisherman are quick to adopt the measures once you
explain to them the procedures and what is required of them," he says.

Naomab adds: "I have always loved nature and everything that comes with it,"
which is why he eagerly accepted his job with the ATF, a move he initially
regretted when he realized he was prone to seasickness.

Now he laughs off those early days of misery at sea, saying that, "My first
few trips were hard, because I used to get really sick. At first I didn't
know much about seabirds, actually I never thought I would be involved with
seabirds. As time passed, I started noticing how beautiful and majestic
these birds are, and at the end of the day all those sleepless nights on the
fishing vessels were worth it."

FEEDBACK:  <https://form.jotform.com/70284580836159> Use this form to send a
message to the author of this post. If you want to post a public comment,
you can do that at the bottom of the page.

 

 
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catch.jpg>
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atch-732x512.jpg

Clemens Naomab of the Albatross Task Force (ATF) cataloging seabirds. Photo
courtesy of the Albatross Task Force

 



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