We have 75 confirmed attendees for the hake longline workshop this week, which includes boat owners, skippers, crew and representatives from Marine and Coastal Management. I’m looking forward to building a relationship with this group.
Currently, this type of longline sinks very slowly, and the workshop will present a number of options for increasing the speed the bait sinks beyond the reach of albatrosses, without impacting on the number of hake fish caught. There is a delicate balance to be struck here, and this is why it is so important to work with the fisheries, to be certain that we understand their needs, as they understand ours.
I’ve also been running a series of workshops for scientific observers. These much-needed observers will spend time at-sea, collecting data from fisheries and recording bycatch. A high percentage of bycatch around the world goes unrecorded, and scientists therefore use the best available data from observers and fleets that do report, to estimate the world’s total seabird bycatch. More observer data will therefore enable scientists to estimate bycatch more accurately in the future.
So, that’s my latest - and I even found time for a quick trip to Namibia, where fishermen are interested in learning more about albatross-friendly techniques. Never a dull moment!