22-05-2025
Better sea bird protection sought amid ‘crisis'
International experts representing 13 countries met in Dunedin this week to discuss better protection for seabirds; yesterday delegates visited the Royal Albatross Centre at Taiaroa Head. PHOTOS: PETER MCINTOSH
New Zealand is seeking better protection for seabirds from high-seas fisheries amid a "conservation crisis" at a meeting of 13 countries in Dunedin this week, the Department of Conversation (Doc) says.
The week-long Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (Acap) meeting of the parties concludes in Dunedin today.
The meeting's chairwoman, Doc international manager Danica Stent, said scientists presented an "extremely grim picture of ongoing population declines of the world's albatross and petrels".
Nearly 70%, or 21, of the 31 Acap-listed species were at risk of extinction, and more than half were experiencing long-term, ongoing decline.
High-seas tuna longline fisheries presented one of the biggest threats to albatrosses and petrels and international studies suggested between 160,000 to 300,000 birds were killed by longline fishers each year, Ms Stent said.
Representatives from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, France, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, South Africa, Spain, the United Kingdom and Uruguay attended.
Taiwan attended as an observer and Forest & Bird, Birdlife International and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) were also represented.
"New Zealand's aim was to agree to an ambitious programme of work, acknowledging the urgency of the albatross and petrel conservation crisis.
"A key focus for New Zealand was seeking countries' commitment to step up efforts to implement Acap's best practice advice about how to prevent capture of seabirds in fisheries," Ms Stent said.
A northern royal albatross (toroa) chick sits on its nest at the albatross colony at Taiaroa Head yesterday.
New Zealand was an international leader on seabird conservation and working to save them was a priority, she said.
More seabird species bred in New Zealand than anywhere else in the world, and 90% of these species were under threat.
Some were at risk of extinction within decades unless international co-operation led to change, she said.
"No matter how well we do at home to get rid of predators from nest sites and reduce seabird bycatch in our waters, we will still lose our birds if we do not address bycatch on the high seas.
"Acap is the leading international organisation for seabird conservation, and it enables the collaboration we need to save our birds.
"The main barrier to saving our seabirds is that Acap has produced best-practice advice on how to minimise bycatch, but this is not implemented in high-seas fisheries."
The meeting of the parties took place every three years and countries decided what work they would undertake together to reverse the decline of albatrosses and petrels, she said.
At this week's meeting, members agreed to step up communications and engagement to ensure "the message about the seabird crisis and solutions reaches key audiences".
It would also help to influence change in high-seas fisheries more effectively, she said.
