World Today

Fishing Technology That’s Letting Turtles Off the Hook

26 Aug 2008

Santiago de Cali, Colombia - Alternative fishing technology has been shown to save turtles while not affecting fish catches, according to a report released by WWF and the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC).

The report demonstrates how changing from the classic J hook to circular hooks, providing adequate training and tools to release turtles accidentally hooked and enhancing sustainable fishing practices, can dramatically reduce incidental catch (bycatch) of marine turtles without impacting fishing activity.

“The results keep demonstrating that changing to circular hooks is the right choice, since it favours turtle conservation without having an impact on the economy of artisanal fisheries. Together with fishermen we are building a culture for sustainable fishing practices that will guarantee fish stocks in the long term,” said Moises Mug, Coordinator of the WWF Bycatch Initiative for the Eastern Pacific.

The report - Bycatch Initiative: Eastern Pacific Program, A Vehicle Towards Sustainable Fisheries - is a comprehensive analysis of data collected during four years of work in eight different countries in the Eastern Pacific - Mexico, Panama, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.

“Our goal is to reduce the incidental catch of marine turtles from the long-line fishing operations without affecting the fisheries activity which is a main source of food and income for local communities,” explained Martin Hall, Principal Researcher for the IATTC.

The program was carried out with the voluntary participation of nearly 1,300 fishermen, conducting over 1,400 fishing trips on 305 artisanal fishing boats. Data gathered by independent on-board observers show an overall significant trend of bycatch reduction for both TBS (tuna, billfishes and sharks) and mahi-mahi fisheries, with reductions up to 89% in the marine turtle bycatch per thousand hooks; 95% of all turtles caught in long-line fishing were recovered alive; and circle hooks performed as well as J hooks in the catch rates of tuna, billfishes and sharks fishery.

“This programme is going beyond an initial focus of saving sea turtles from bycatch, and is creating the groundwork toward sustainable artisanal long-line fishing in the eastern Pacific,” said Amanda Nickson, Global Leader of WWF’s Bycatch Initiative.

“By working co-operatively, collecting data and learning how to improve practices, this programme is living proof that conservation and industry can work together for sustainability.”

END

Editor’s Notes
- Participants to this program are: the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC), The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), The Ocean Conservancy, the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council (WPRFMC), Overseas Fisheries Cooperation Foundation of Japan (OFCF - Japan), and WWF (Known as World Wildlife Fund in the United States and Canada).

- The WWF Regional Bycatch Program for the Eastern Pacific develops, test, and implement new fisheries techniques that reduce Bycatch (incidental capture of sea turtles). It also works on sea turtle conservation by developing legislative framework on bycatch, and raising awareness among fisheries communities about sustainable fishing.

The Program seeks a participatory approach by working with fisheries’ organizations, fishing companies and captains, fisheries authorities, academic and training institutions, buyers, exporters, and local NGOs. Currently, the program is being carried out in eight countries: Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Mexico. Nicaragua is expected to join next.

Basic components of the program include: recruiting partners; talking to fishermen to get them to try circle hooks instead of the classic “J” hooks; training observers to collect data on the fish that are caught as well as the sea turtles that are incidentally catch; providing gear and techniques to fishermen to release marine turtles, as well as enhancing sustainable fisheries practices.

Two-tailed Wilcoxon Signed-Rank tests for matched pairs were used to analyze the overall trend of the difference in hooking rates for J hooks and circle hooks. This non-parametric, two-tailed test considers both the direction of the difference between hooks and the magnitude of the observed difference.

Main challenges for the near future include a) how to make the circular hooks available in the marketplace at reasonable and competitive prices; b) how to encourage the institutional adoption of the fishing observers program by local actors for sustainability in the medium and long terms; c) carrying out education and communications campaigns; d) facilitating technological adaptation and transformation of the fishing fleet with appropriate regulatory measures; and e) developing potential markets for fish coming from fisheries with circular hooks and turtle-friendly practices.

Further information
Julio Mario Fernández b
Communications Coordinator - WWF Bycatch Initiative in the eastern Pacific
Communications Director - WWF Colombia
Tel + 57 2 558 25 77 Ext 117
Cel + 57 315 491 15 69 / 313 765 98 06
jmfernandez@wwf.org.co

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Lack of data hampers conservation efforts

For decades, efforts to save the hawksbills have focused primarily on safeguarding the eggs and ensuring that hatchlings survive and grow to eventually form a viable population. No one knows where these ancient mariners go after the nesting season, or where they forage as juveniles and adults.

Research elsewhere have shown that whilst some populations of hawksbills nest on nearby beaches fringing coral reefs, others migrate hundreds to thousands of kilometres in search of sponges at distant foraging grounds. Where do hawksbills that nest on Melaka’s shores swim off to after nesting? Where do they feed? Do they forage in Malaysian waters or migrate to distant coral reefs in neighbouring waters to live?
This lack of information hampers efforts to plan for turtle conservation. Satellite tracking of Melaka’s hawksbills using transmitters is one of the ways that will enable us to find out more about these gentle and beautiful mariners to effectively conserve them for our future generations.

These submarine archipelagoes are bathed in the warmest of waters, and the designs of life are fashioned like tapestries.
David Doubilet; writer & photographer for National Geographic

Tracking Hawksbills by satellite

WWF-Malaysia is using satellite telemetry to track hawksbills on the journey back to their feeding grounds. Marine turtles are only dependent on the beach for egg incubation and spend most of their lifetime in coastal waters, feeding in coral reefs. Results from this research are crucial for a better understanding of their post-nesting movement and habitat use.

The project is tracking hawksbills to:

establish the migration route and feeding ground of the hawksbills to facilitate the protection of their habitat;
communicate migration routes and distant foraging grounds of hawksbills to relevant regional Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) and Agreements so as to enhance regional marine turtle conservation strategies and partnerships (e.g. Indian Ocean-Southeast Asia Marine Turtle MoU and MoU on ASEAN Sea Turtle Conservation and Protection); and
educate and create awareness among local schoolchildren in the coastal areas, based on satellite telemetry of turtles.

How Satellite Tracking Works

Satellite telemetry allows researchers to track sea turtles in the open ocean by attaching a Platform Transmitter Terminal (PTT) to the shell of a turtle. The PTT transmits signals to an orbiting satellite each time the turtle surfaces for air. The satellite sends the data on to a receiving station on earth that researchers can access on their computers. Find out more

How are satellite transmitters deployed on sea turtles?

The KIWISAT 101 (a model of satellite transmitters designed for marine tracking) is hydrodynamically shaped and weighs a minute 630g. It is attached to the turtle's carapace (shell) with dental putty (the stuff used to make dental impressions) as a base and encased using epoxy adhesive. The whole process (including the preparation of the carapace and taking necessary measurements) can be completed within 3 hours in which the turtle will be safely released after. The attachment is intended to be an impermanent fixture as it is meant to be easily removed if encountered after the usefulness of the device has expired or eventually detach itself due to prolong deterioration of the adhesive.

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Satellite Tracking of Hawksbill Turtles

18 Aug 2008

WWF-Malaysia, in partnership with the Department of Fisheries Melaka and Kem Terendak military base camp, has successfully deployed a satellite transmitter on a female hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) in the wee hours of 13 August 2008 after she successfully nested. She was released at approximately 0430 hrs.

This is the third and final deployment of satellite transmitters in Melaka for this year by WWF-Malaysia; two others have been deployed on hawksbills nesting at Pulau Upeh and Padang Kemunting on 4 August and 13 July 2008 respectively.

This research, the third year running, is being conducted to discover the foraging habitat of the hawksbills nesting along the Melaka coastline and their migration patterns in the Strait of Malacca. The research data gathered is crucial in identifying and reducing threats to the turtles’ marine habitat, where they spend most of their lives. These hawksbills undertake their long journey every few years to Melaka beaches solely to complete their reproductive cycle.

Since 2006 five hawksbills have been tracked by WWF-Malaysia and the Department of Fisheries Melaka using this satellite telemetry technology. Four of the turtles were tracked last year to the waters of Riau Archipelago in Indonesia whereas the other were last located in the southern Singaporean waters.

Kem Terendak, Pulau Upeh and Padang Kemunting were specially chosen as deployment sites since these nesting grounds support three of the largest nesting populations of hawksbills in Melaka. Melaka is home to the largest nesting population in Peninsular Malaysia, second only to Sabah’s Turtle Islands. Each year approximately 300-400 nestings are recorded by the State Department of Fisheries.

The hawksbill tagged at Kem Terendak, currently unnamed, now bears identification numbers on both her front flippers (Tag Nos. MY3267 & MY3268). She measures 71.5 cm in shell length and weighs 42kg. She laid 96 eggs, this being her second nesting recorded, which was immediately translocated to Padang Kemunting Turtle Hatchery managed by Department of Fisheries for safe incubation.

As the hawksbills’ marine home extends beyond Malaysian territorial waters, regional co-operation and partnership is an important factor in saving these ancient mariners. Guided by the satellite telemetry, WWF-Malaysia will be able to track their journey back to their feeding grounds. Marine turtles are only dependent on the beach for egg incubation and spend most of their lifetime in coastal waters, feeding in coral reefs. Results from this research are crucial for a better understanding of their post-nesting movement and habitat use.

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