Last month I returned from my most recent trip, this time aboard on the FV Maria, the same longliner that I had worked with last winter. We spent 19 days at sea and conducted 15 longline sets. In order to minimize seabird interactions all these sets were performed with a tori line deployed and were started at night. Despite the constant presence of albatrosses and petrels during the operations we performed another trip with no seabird bycatch, showing the fishermen again that it is possible and easy if they are just willing to make the effort.
During this trip the catch of target species (tuna) was not very good, and because of this we navigated a lot searching for fish. We travelled from 31° to 34° S, and in water depths from 500 m to more than 4,000 m deep, at least 250 nautical miles off the coast.
Hearing from my colleagues Sebastián Jiménez and Martin Abreu, from Uruguay, I noted the similarities between seabird information reported by them and my own observations at sea in Brazil during the same period of the year (October/November).
According to Sebastián they observed a peak of Wandering albatrosses between September and November in Uruguayan waters, and during my trip last month I was surprised by number of Wandering Albatrosses*, at least 16 were attending the vessel at the same time, many more than the maximum of seven I have seen during winter months.
Martin observed a total of 23 species during his last trip, including the Sooty albatross. Coincidently, during my last trip, I observed 24 species, including not only the uncommon Sooty (Phoebetria fusca), but also the Light-mantled albatross (Phoebetria palpebrata). That was the first time I have seen such a rare species in Brazilian waters, and was a surprise for me to know that Martin also observed this albatross in Uruguay at the same time.
These observations reinforce the similarities between the southern Brazilian and Uruguayan waters, in the same way that similarities exist between the terrestrial ecosystems, and even between the culture of southern Brazil and our neighbouring country.
This reminds us that the division of the sea is purely political, and only through international cooperation can we achieve success in albatross conservation.
*In fact, some of the “Wandering albatross” observed could be Tristan albatross, as these two species are virtually indistinguishable at sea.
The Volvo Ocean Race has worked closely with the Save the Albatross Campaign since 2005, helping to increase awareness around the global plight of albatrosses. The Save the Albatross Campaign was initiated to inform and demonstrate to fishermen how to prevent incidental mortality of these endangered birds. We, the Albatross Task Force form an important aspect of how the campaign functions.
This year the Volvo Ocean Race has allowed members of the Albatross Task force to have a presence at the race village in each of the ports where we operate. Cape Town is the first port where this has happened.
Each day morning we have 30 school children come and visit the stand where we give them a 10 minute lesson on what amazing birds the albatrosses are, the problems these birds face when they interact with our fisheries and some of the solutions we have to solve the problem. Many of the children we see have never even heard of albatrosses and are amazed when I bring out my tape measure to show them the enormity of an albatross’ wingspan (up to 3.5m). Our stand is open all day for members of the public to ask questions, get information about our work or to donate to the project. I was also lucky enough to be able to be given the opportunity to present a short talk on the work the ATF does locally to some of the team members of the race.
This year the Volvo Ocean Race has also launched a global campaign which is aiming to raise the awareness of the increasing volumes of pollution that is found in our oceans and threatens our marine life. They have a very effective and emotive video displaying the effect of pollution on albatrosses on one of their breeding islands (Midway Island). I think this is definitely going to have a very positive influence on anyone who views it.
Go and visit the Volvo Ocean Race website for more information or just to follow your favourite team (www.volvooceanrace.com). You can also keep a look out for the Volvo Ocean Race Game!
Last week, the ATF in Argentina sent a package to Ushuaia, where the fishing vessel Antartic III from fishing company Estremar S.A. was waiting. In the package were two sets of specially designed tori lines that resulted from ATF tests aboard the vessel this year.
The use of tori lines is now obligatory in this fishery, as established through a mandate from the Federal Fishery Council and the Fishery Undersecretary.
Our work began by searching for suitable and locally available materials and trying out different models of tori line in collaboration with the National Fishery Investigation and Development Institute (INIDEP) and local NGO Aves Argentinas. Once we had completed our final design, I took the first designs on a commercial fishing trip during February, March and April to test them out.
The picture displays the tori lines packaged and ready to send to the vessel, currently at anchor in the most southern city in the world.
Our results were very positive, as the design effectively reduces the amount of interactions between seabirds and the fishing gear (baited hooks) in this fishery, which implies a potential reduction in seabird mortality.
Parallel to this work onboard, we held meetings with the Vice President of the fishing company, Mr Marcelo Gonzalez, to gain support and collaboration for our work. Luckily, Estremar S.A. has proven to be a seabird friendly fishing company, and we were given all the help needed to carry out our experiments onboard.
Thanks to the good interpersonal relations between us and the company, it was possible to complete the research needed for the tori line design and now send these new models for use aboard. The tori lines should arrive in time for the vessel to use them throughout the next trip, and through continued contact with the crew and national observers we will be able to monitor the efficiency of the tori lines in reducing seabird mortality in the long-term.
In my most recent trip to sea, we set off for a period of eleven days from the port of La Paloma, located on the east coast of Uruguay. We had already partaken in various trips on this vessel, and so the crew already knew us well and they were happy to collaborate with our work again. We now have a much greater sense of confidence from the industry than when we initiated the experimental work.
The fishing was satisfactory, with an acceptable amount of tuna and with environmental conditions that, despite the constant winds, were not too extreme.
The amount of seabirds during the trip was quite normal, with hundreds of birds around the vessel, but the variation was interesting as a total of 23 species were present during the fishing operations including some uncommon species such as the sooty albatross Phoebetria fusca.
During the trip we continued testing the practical use and effectiveness of the tori line, as we have been doing for some time now to gather sufficient data to show that the mitigation does not only reduce seabird bycatch but can also be implemented without negatively affecting the daily routine aboard (deploying the hook line during the set).
This image shows the start of setting operations from the aft of a Uruguayan longline vessel. The tori line can be seen deployed to the left.
We completed a total of eight sets during the trip, four with a tori line and four without. We also conducted line weighting experiments, using Time Depth Recorders to measure the sink rate of the fishing gear to see how long it takes to them to reach a depth beyond the reach of the albatross.
An important aspect of both experiments was that the work was conducted onboard a commercial fishing vessel, with all the difficulties that that entails. This helps show that the results are representative in the context of daily fishing routines and conditions.
Furthermore, we were able to achieve positive advances in the awareness of the crew regarding the work we are performing aboard in Uruguay. Since we began, we can now recognise that the crew are familiar with some of the vulnerable seabird species around the vessels, they have become interested enough to ask questions about one or another of the species and give their opinions about how we may improve the tori line and the method used to set and haul this mitigation measure – opinions that are sometimes extremely insightful as they have the most accurate and detailed knowledge of the vessel operations through their daily work at-sea.
Beyond the experimental work, the sailors in Uruguay today are aware of the seabird situation and known that their collaboration is an important and necessary aspect of seabird conservation. Thanks to the South Atlantic Bulletin that we distribute regularly, the general public and industry are also aware of our work to save the albatross.
This image shows a Wandering albatross at sea, one of many birds from this species that visit the waters off Uruguay at this time of year.
Without doubt, the albatross are one of the groups of seabirds that need our greatest conservation effort. Commercial fisheries, through incidental capture, have generated a huge impact in many populations and almost all the species are currently in danger of extinction. As they spend the main part of their lives at sea, these species escape our view with the exception of one, not insignificant group of people: those who work on the high seas.
Fishermen live from day to day with the seabirds, in many regions of the planet the albatross are an important part of the bird assemblages that associate with fishing vessels and feed from the discards. During the different fishing operations, these species accompany the vessels as tireless companions throughout all of their trips. This is fundamental, as the first step toward conserving is understanding.
As we increasingly get to know these animals, we understand in greater depth why it is necessary to make efforts to reverse the current status of the albatross. Several reasons immediately occur to me: amongst them is the aesthetic value they hold for us humans, we have an obligation to ensure the next generations are also able to appreciate these fantastic animals; another would be their role in the marine ecosystem.
However, on-board a vessel last month after a long discussion about the same issue with Alfredo Olaya, captain of a longline fishing vessel, I experienced some circumstances on deck that are nothing new to the crew, but which made me think about something which I will now describe.
One emblematic species in the South Atlantic is the Wandering albatross (Diomedea exulans). The population that arrives in Uruguayan waters reproduce in the subantarctic archipelago of South Georgia. This albatross is one of the largest flying bird species on the planet and is capable of living for several decades. This species only reproduces every two years. Both parents take on the long responsibility of rearing up the chick, from building the nest in the tussock grass through to when the chick fledges and abandons the island, a period of time that takes around a year.
The juvenile albatross will return to the island for the first time after spending several years at sea and will only start to breed when it reaches around 10 years old .Unfortunately, this population is currently declining dramatically and today there are hardly a thousand breeding pairs. The longline fisheries in the Southwest Atlantic are without doubt the main cause for this decline.
During October, I was aboard a pelagic longline fishing vessel that was targeting swordfish, tuna and sharks. My objective was to continue evaluating the effectiveness of tori lines at reducing seabird bycatch, a project that we started through the ATF in 2009.
Our studies on board have permitted us to record that the Wandering albatross abundance increases in Uruguayan waters between July and November, with a peak between September and November.
In the majority of cases the birds are adult females, which are still rearing a chick on Bird Island (one of the islands around South Georgia), have finished raising their chick or are just starting to reproduce. Getting to know the details of the life history of these albatross has been possible thanks to close collaboration between the Proyecto Albatros y Petreles – Uruguay and the British Antarctic Survey (BAS).
Scientists at BAS have been studying the albatross at Bird Island, South Georgia since 1958, where the birds have been ringed with metal and coloured plastic bands to identify the individuals and thereby gain an insight into their movements throughout their lives.
During hauling observations aboard on the 19th October, I was taking photos of some of the seabirds from the deck and was paying special attention to the Wandering albatross. One of these albatross circled in close to the vessel hauling bay and I was able to get a good picture (below). The bird had two rings attached to its legs, one metal and one green plastic ring with the number 376. I showed these images to the fishermen. I must add that seeing these birds with rings is nothing unusual, as the whole Bird Island population is monitored by BAS and it is common for the fishermen of the fleet to have seen one of these birds when they are caught and brought on board.
Even so, the information that these rings allow us to obtain throughout the long life of the animals does not often find its way back to the fishing vessels, paradoxically those who live with the birds on the high seas.
When I returned to shore, Martin Abreu continued a trip on the same vessel and on the 2nd November recorded another ringed Wandering albatross, in this case carrying a white plastic ring with the number 770 (see below). We reported these sightings to BAS in line with the 50 or so cases we have reported in the past. However, the life history of these two birds really caught my attention.
The information that BAS provided us with explained that the bird I saw in October was a female that was first ringed in 1988 as a chick, the same bird had returned to Bird Island for the first time in the summer of 1990/91. Currently this bird is raising a chick which was waiting in excellent health for her to return to the nest. The albatross Martin photographed in November was an adult female, first ringed during the summer of 1982/83 and reproduced for the first time in 1987/88. Until now, this female has successfully raised ten chicks. We expect it to be arriving back at Bird Island over the next few days, as they breed every two years and this bird was not present during the last season.
The life history of these albatross, known in great detail thanks to the effort of the BAS scientists, could not generate any other sensation than that of respect. One of these birds has my exact age, 34 year old. It has travelled the oceanic waters of the South Atlantic and possibly other great oceans during its non-breeding season over more than three decades. I cannot imagine how many fishing vessels it must have come into contact with over that period. Only in Uruguay the longline fleet is active since 1981. This individual and many others from the same population have been flying year after year within the vicinity of the Uruguayan fleet and were even here long before these vessels started fishing, as Wandering albatross live for upto 60 years old.
During this period new generations of fishermen have joined the fleet. When one of these birds is caught on a hook and dies, it must not be taken lightly. A simple fishing operation can result in a fatality.
The combination of night setting, a tori line and line weighting can be applied to these vessels without any major difficulty. By doing so, the long life history of these birds can be saved from a fatal end that only takes a few seconds to occur.
Sebastián Jiménez
Albatross Task Force – Uruguay
Proyecto Albatros y Petreles – Uruguay
Thanks to Andy Wood and Richard Phillips of the British Antarctic Survey for providing with such kindness the information on the ringed albatross, and to Alfredo Olaya and his crew for the collaboration and good faith that we always receive onboard.