Harbour porpoise bycatch in UK gill nets and trawls is among the highest in European waters, with management measures urgently needed to reduce mortality.
Gill net entanglement causes drowning in porpoises, a death involving distress and suffocation that is not rapid. The scale of bycatch in UK waters represents a major welfare harm to a species already facing multiple stressors. Mandatory, enforced pinger use combined with observer coverage to document actual bycatch rates are the welfare-priority interventions for this preventable mortality.