Blogs

Every year BirdLife South Africa gathers a congregation of very knowledgeable scientists and birders to discuss issues around bird conservation. This annual gathering has since been coined ‘FLOCK’ and it is BirdLife South Africa’s Annual General Meeting (AGM). This year, however was...

As the Albatross Task Force team leader for South Africa, I was recently asked to provide some fishery observer training slightly further from home than usual. Excitingly I was to travel to Korea and conduct a one-day training workshop with Korean fisheries observers and scientists from the South East...

During eight days at-sea we only managed to half-fill the fish hold on this fishing vessel. This explains how the fishing has been recently. We can’t blame it on the weather because most of the days were fine. However, there were some few days when the sea was rough with strong winds, thus making...

ATF instructors’ work is amazing and something to keep smiling about. Apart from testing seabird bycatch mitigation measures, ATF instructors have other forms of entertainment that keeps them refreshed at all times. A normal day starts with breakfast wonderfully prepared by the wonderful ship’s...

Albatross Task Force instructors have many responsibilities that include but are not-limited to working with fisheries. Of course, our main objective is seabird conservation and we do that by finding ways to work together with the fishers to reduce bycatch levels in the industry. This objective is facilitated...

In the impoverished community of Ocean View lies a team of dedicated and inspiring people... A group of disabled men and woman from the Ocean View Association for Persons with Disabilities (OVAPD) proves that anybody with commitment can make a real difference to conservation, while learning new skills...

The moment I’d been waiting for finally arrived. After being confined to the office due the cancellation of my last trip, I could not wait to set a foot on the Irvin & Johnson (I&J) fishing vessel the Forest Lily . Bronwyn, the South African Albatross Task Force project leader accompanied...

The ATF in South Africa is working to disseminate seabird conservation information and to demonstrate best practice measures on board vessels to reduce seabird bycatch. Conducting research on board local and foreign fishing vessels is a large part of that process. Research findings are made available...

We were extremely excited to welcome Allen Tshautshau as the newest member of the Albatross Task Force team in South Africa in early July. He is an extremely enthusiastic and passionate conservationist and wasted no time in getting down to the grind stone. On only his second day on the job he arrived...