Entanglement in fishing gear is a leading cause of dolphin injury and death globally; mitigation technology and policy reforms are saving thousands of dolphins annually.
Fishing gear entanglement causes significant suffering before death — dolphins may struggle for minutes to hours before drowning, and non-lethal entanglement causes rope burns, appendage loss, and infection. The welfare burden across the estimated 300,000 cetacean bycatch deaths annually is staggering. Pingers are cost-effective and proven effective but require consistent deployment — lost or damaged pingers eliminate the deterrent effect. Seasonal and area fishing closures in critical dolphin habitat reduce bycatch without technology costs. Consumer certification schemes that verify low dolphin bycatch provide market incentives for fishery improvement. The vaquita's probable extinction demonstrates the catastrophic outcome when entanglement mitigation comes too late.