Pelagic Longline Seabird Bycatch

Longline fisheries kill hundreds of thousands of seabirds annually, threatening albatrosses and petrels globally.

Key Facts

Approximately 300,000 seabirds including albatrosses are killed in longline fisheries each year
19 of 22 albatross species are threatened with extinction in part due to longline bycatch
Birds dive to take bait from longlines during setting and become hooked and drowned
Tori lines, night setting, and blue-dyed bait dramatically reduce seabird bycatch
Some fisheries have reduced seabird bycatch by over 90% through mandatory mitigation measures

Welfare Considerations

Seabird bycatch in longline fisheries kills birds through drowning after becoming hooked on baited lines during setting. The death is not instantaneous — birds struggle before drowning, experiencing acute fear and physical distress. For albatrosses that mate for life and raise single chicks over years, each bycatch death represents the loss of a bonded partner and the likely failure of ongoing breeding attempts. The scale of bycatch — hundreds of thousands annually — across species already threatened with extinction makes this both a welfare crisis and an extinction emergency that effective mitigation measures can substantially address.

What You Can Do

Choose seafood certified from fisheries with mandatory seabird bycatch mitigation
Support legislation requiring tori lines and night setting in longline fisheries operating in seabird habitat
Donate to seabird conservation organizations advocating for longline fishery reform
Avoid purchasing tuna and toothfish from fisheries without bycatch mitigation certification
Learn about albatross conservation and share information about the longline threat