Wild Albatross Longline Bycatch and Welfare

Albatrosses are the most threatened seabird group globally, with longline fishing bycatch drowning tens of thousands annually — causing a welfare and conservation emergency.

Key Facts

19 of 22 albatross species are threatened with extinction according to the IUCN Red List
An estimated 100,000 albatrosses are killed annually as bycatch in longline fisheries targeting tuna, toothfish, and swordfish
Albatrosses seize baited hooks being deployed, dive after them, and drown when dragged beneath the surface
They are among the longest-lived birds, with Wisdom the Laysan albatross still breeding at over 70 years of age
Their slow reproductive rate — one egg per year, first breeding at 8-10 years — makes population recovery from bycatch extremely slow
Simple mitigation measures including night setting, line weighting, and bird-scaring streamers reduce bycatch by over 90% in trials
The Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACAP) coordinates international bycatch reduction efforts

Welfare Considerations

Albatrosses drowning on longlines experience acute suffering — entangled and dragged underwater while struggling against the line. The scale of this mortality — over 100,000 annually — represents both a conservation crisis and a massive welfare burden for individual birds of exceptional cognitive and social complexity, including lifelong pair bonds and multi-decade lifespans. The mitigation measures that prevent this — night setting, weighted lines, and streamer lines — are technically proven and relatively inexpensive. Their inconsistent adoption reflects enforcement gaps and weak compliance in some fishing nations. Consumer seafood choices certified to bycatch-reducing standards directly address this.

What You Can Do

Choose tuna, swordfish, and toothfish certified by the Marine Stewardship Council or equivalent schemes requiring bycatch mitigation
Support organizations advocating for mandatory albatross bycatch measures in regional fisheries management organizations
Donate to ACAP-affiliated conservation organizations working on bycatch reduction and albatross population monitoring
Advocate for fishing agreements to require proven bycatch mitigation measures on all vessels operating in albatross habitat
Reduce consumption of longline-caught seafood species where bycatch mitigation cannot be verified