Seabirds including albatrosses, petrels, and shearwaters are killed in enormous numbers as bycatch in longline fisheries. Simple mitigation measures could save hundreds of thousands of birds annually.
Seabird bycatch represents a preventable welfare catastrophe. Albatrosses and other seabirds that become hooked on longlines experience distress during the struggle to free themselves before being dragged underwater and drowned. The scale — hundreds of thousands annually — combined with the effectiveness of available solutions (measures that could eliminate 80-99% of incidents at minimal cost) makes this one of the most frustrating persistent welfare and conservation failures. Consumer choice for certified sustainable seafood that includes bycatch standards, and advocacy for international fishing regulations to mandate mitigation measures, are the primary levers available to address this crisis.