Cape gannets are endemic to southern African waters and breed in spectacular colonies on offshore islands. Their welfare is directly linked to the sardine run and anchovy availability, both affected by the growing purse seine fishing industry.
Cape gannets that cannot locate sardine and anchovy shoals must travel further from breeding colonies to find food, increasing the time chicks spend without provisioning. Chicks that receive insufficient fish grow slowly and may fledge at suboptimal weight, reducing survival prospects. Colony-level breeding failure occurs in years of particularly poor prey availability. The direct competition between industrial fishing and gannet foraging creates a measurable welfare impact at population scale.