Objectives

The goal of this project is to understand the impact of fisheries bycatch on vulnerable seabird, marine mammal, and sea turtle populations. This is the first critical step to reducing bycatch of these at-risk species and to promoting sustainable fisheries. To achieve the goals of the project, we are working to identify bycatch researchers worldwide to learn more about ongoing bycatch research efforts. Our intent is to strengthen and facilitate communication and knowledge transfer among ongoing research projects, and to identify areas for collaborative research efforts. We hope that by working with the regional leaders in bycatch research, we can work collaboratively to advance bycatch research and mitigation around the globe.

In order to assess, and ultimately work to reduce, bycatch, we must also understand the prevalence of fishing gear, the frequency of bycatch encounters, and the oceanographic context of bycatch. To meet these data needs, we are working to:

Collect and map fishing effort for key fishing gears (e.g. trawls, longlines, gillnets, purse seines) in different global regions

We need to understand the distribution and amount of fishing gear in the water, and to show how fishing effort varies throughout the year. We are currently building a fishing effort database from published and shared data.  Please examine our list of resources included to date in the link below.  We welcome all suggestions on improvements and needed additions!

• Fishing Effort Database
  

Synthesize bycatch data for seabirds, sea turtles and marine mammals

We are developing a database based on all published and available bycatch data. This database includes: bycatch rates for key species, mortality data and estimates, places and times of bycatch, and relevant oceanographic data.  See the links below for lists of the resources included to date. Again, we welcome all suggestions for improvements and needed additions. Collaborations with regional bycatch researchers provides the opportunity to present and incorporate new data into the database, and give colleagues an opportunity to review existing information across the region and globe.

• Bycatch Study Bibliography
• Global Bycatch Study Map
  

Integrate data on bycatch, fishing effort and oceanography to develop a spatial understanding of bycatch at a large, regional scale

These analyses will consider fisheries activity and bycatch in an oceanographic context in order to identify potential spatio-temporal hotspots of fisheries activity and animal occurrence. These analyses will also help to assess bycatch across taxa and gear types.

Connect regional investigators with interested NGOs/donors to further mitigation development and implementation

We are inviting collaboration with conservation organizations interested in becoming actively involved in promoting and funding local bycatch mitigation research, thus bringing together NGOs with regional investigators seeking funds for bycatch mitigation projects and filling in the knowledge gaps on bycatch and mitigation.

Promote collaboration among scientists involved in bycatch assessment and mitigation research across taxa, fisheries and national borders

Through collaboration with bycatch researchers and organizations from around the world, we hope to develop novel analytical approaches and strategies to integrate bycatch information within the region, and across taxa and fishing gear type.  This integrated, international effort is critical to reversing alarming declines in populations of seabirds, sea turtles, and marine mammals due to fisheries bycatch.

Publish collaborative manuscripts and meeting proceedings

Broadcasting project results within the scientific community and to the general public is an important task of this project. Understanding the impact and effects of bycatch is essential and sometimes urgent for species conservation and fisheries management. Therefore, we will work with collaborators to direct project results to peer reviewed literature and scientific meetings. We are also in the planning phases of a bycatch newsletter that will offer another forum for dissemination of research results. We also strive to make our findings accessible to those outside of the scientific community. As per the data sharing agreements, all data holders will maintain proprietary rights to their data and data will not be used in analyses without prior written consent of the data holder.

• Data Sharing Agreement