Marine Conservation Biology - Hawaii

Conserving Marine Biodiversity in the World’s Most Remote Island Chain

Protected Species and Longlines

Sea birds, sea turtles and cetaceans are taken in unsustainable numbers as by-catch in pelagic longline fisheries in the North Pacific. The initial management response in the U.S. was to close large areas to longline fisheries, but new conservation technology offers hope that the level of by-catch may be reduced, at least in U.S. fisheries. In addition, in Hawaii false killer whales (Pseudorca crassidens) engage in depredation – they take captured fish off pelagic longlines – and in doing so, they are at risk of entanglement and mortality. The numbers of entangled false killer whales are relatively small, but these animals occur in very small populations and cannot sustain even moderate levels of mortality. How can we best balance the use of longlines to catch tuna and swordfish with the conservation of other pelagic species?