Wildlife

Seabird Conservation and Welfare

Seabirds face multiple human-caused threats including bycatch, pollution, and climate change. Their long lives and slow reproduction make population recovery challenging.

Key Facts

Longline fisheries kill an estimated 300,000 seabirds annually as bycatch
Albatrosses are among the most threatened seabird groups due to longevity and slow breeding
Plastic ingestion causes suffering and death in seabirds including petrels and shearwaters
Colony-breeding seabirds are vulnerable to introduced predators like rats and cats on nesting islands

Welfare Considerations

Seabird welfare intersects strongly with conservation. Individual suffering from bycatch, plastic ingestion, and entanglement is widespread, while population-level threats jeopardize entire species. Tori lines, circle hooks, and bycatch mitigation measures have proven effective at reducing seabird deaths in fisheries and deserve broader adoption.

What You Can Do

Support fisheries certified under seabird bycatch reduction programs
Reduce single-use plastic consumption to limit ocean plastic pollution
Donate to seabird conservation projects that remove invasive predators from nesting islands
Advocate for mandatory bycatch mitigation requirements in longline fisheries