Latest news with #sprat
Irish Times
02-08-2025
- General
- Irish Times
Whales in Irish waters face a new threat
Almost a quarter of a century ago, west Cork skipper Colin Barnes gave up commercial fishing to set up one of Ireland's first whale-watching businesses. Now whales have left his search area of the ocean because the sprat they feed on have been fished to near extinction. Barnes recently told The Irish Times he can no longer offer 'world-class whale-watching.' Sprat are clearly being overfished. Objectors in Co Cork plan a march this month against this uncontrolled exploitation. The protest will take place in Clonakilty on Wednesday, August 13th. According to Dr Simon Berrow of the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG), whales are moving farther north in Irish waters, probably following changing fish distribution. Thankfully, the Government has resolved to impose a ban from October 1st on the trawling of sprat in Irish inshore waters by vessels over 18 metres in length. READ MORE Among the most spectacular of these giant visitors are the humpback whales, which breach right out of the ocean. The overfishing of one of their main foods could mark the second time in more than a century that whales have come under threat in Ireland. [ Why are Ireland's whales disappearing? Opens in new window ] Few Irish people are aware that this country was once the base for a Norwegian whaling operation that killed and butchered hundreds of great whales from the Atlantic Ocean. I have been to visit the site of this whalemeat factory on the island of South Inishkea off Co Mayo. Here, on the little promontory of Rusheen, lie the remains of an industrial operation based on the giants of the ocean. More than a century after they were abandoned, the brick walls and rusting machinery of the whaling station lie dismembered in the ocean winds. A second station was built on the Co Mayo mainland at Ely Bay but little trace remains apart from a scattering of bricks. Whaling boats from these two locations killed and brought back to Ireland a total of 693 whales of six species over a seven-year period from 1908 to 1914. The most numerous quarry species comprised fin whales but it is hard to believe they managed to catch 66 blue whales, rarely seen in Irish waters but now gradually increasing again in the Atlantic. This fascinating history was researched by the Belfast zoologist James Fairley and described in his book Irish Whales and Whaling. The outbreak of war in 1914 put an end to the whaling operation, although the Ely Bay station was briefly used in 1920 and 1922, during which a further 202 whales were caught. Commercial whaling was banned in 1986 by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) after some species almost became globally extinct. Norwegian, Icelandic and Japanese vessels still hunt whales today but most other countries have banned this barbaric activity. In the early 1990s, then taoiseach Charles Haughey declared Europe's first Whale and Dolphin Santuary in Irish territorial waters. Although it is difficult to estimate population sizes in these animals due to their long migrations, there are signs of recovery in some species. In the 20th century sightings of the distinctive humpback whale in Irish waters were rare. However, since 1999 the IWDG has been collecting humpback whale data in Ireland including sightings by ordinary citizens. [ Ireland's 'hotbed' for whales who have migrated from southern waters Opens in new window ] With ready availability of high-quality cameras, at least 137 individual humpback whales have now been identified from their markings. The repeat matching of photos has confirmed many of these individual whales return to Irish waters annually, with an average resighting rate of about 63 animals in years when 10 or more individual whales were recorded. Dr Simon Berrow says: 'Clearly humpbacks are increasing due largely to an end to killing them and their distribution might also have been affected by climate change . Fin and sperm whale populations may possibly be recovering too. 'Grey whales were extinct in the Atlantic but are now recolonising as the population expanded through the opening up of the Northwest Passage from the Pacific due to climate warming. Among the smaller species, there has been a big increase in common dolphin numbers in Irish waters due to a shift in their distribution rather than a population increase.' The historic whaling operation in Mayo ended when the last whaling station was destroyed by fire in 1923. Still, the demise of this local industry was probably hastened by the replacement of whale oil with fossil fuels that still largely power our economy today. Now it is their key food species that is under threat in our waters. More than three decades after Irish waters were declared a whale and dolphin sanctuary, the unrelenting fishing of sprat here may be more than these giants of the ocean can survive. Richard Nairn is an ecologist and writer. His latest book is Future Wild: Nature Restoration in Ireland
Irish Times
26-07-2025
- General
- Irish Times
Ireland's ‘hotbed' for whales who have migrated from southern waters
For the past few years, Donegal Bay has been a hotbed for rare aquatic mammals. Part of the reason for this is that whales who may be more traditionally associated with Irish waters in the south of the country have been migrating further north, driven by a desire for one of their favourite Irish delicacies: sprat. Residents in west Cork have been drawing attention to industrial fishing of sprat in their communities through a Save Our Sprat campaign. On Tuesday, they received some encouraging news: Ireland is set to ban industrial sprat fishing in inshore waters from October next year in the move the campaign hopes will pave the way for a return of some familiar creatures. READ MORE Members of the campaign see it as a positive first step, though they are concerned that the restrictions don't go far enough and will continue to campaign. Pádraig Whooley, sightings officer for the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG), says that the same whales spotted off the coasts of Cork and Kerry 15 or 20 years ago are now popping up in places like Donegal Bay. 'That's obviously where the feed is at the moment,' he says. Other factors could include climate change, says Whooley. 'It could also be the fact that we're hammering what they're feeding on down here, which is the sprat,' he says. 'It's a very controversial one and local coastal communities are frankly getting very angry with the way we're allowing the industrial extraction of forage fish species like sprat. 'If you're into marine wildlife, and whales and dolphins in particular, Donegal Bay seems to be the place to be right now,' says Pádraig Whooley. Photograph: Joshua Nueva 'What we in the IWDG are saying is that the more sprat we're removing – and it's completely unregulated; they can catch as many as they want – we are saying that sprat is part of [the reason for] fewer of these humpback whales turning up in the likes of west Cork and west Kerry.' Donegal Bay is an inlet that touches three counties: Sligo , Leitrim and Donegal . There are a number of decent viewing points for activity in its waters, among them Sliabh Liag, Muckross Head and Mullaghmore Head. A number of species can be spotted in these waters. 'We also had a killer whale turn up [there] this weekend,' Whooley says. 'When the guys were out looking for humpback whales, they found one of the Scottish killer whales known as Aquarius. He was also, about three weeks ago, down off the Blaskets in Kerry. 'If you're into marine wildlife, and whales and dolphins in particular, Donegal Bay seems to be the place to be right now ... The more you see these animals, the more anecdotes you hear about them – the less they're just a number on a database. [They develop] personalities.' Even for experienced chroniclers of marine life, humpback whale sightings in Ireland are rare. [ Why are Ireland's whales disappearing? Opens in new window ] View across the bay at Slieve League cliffs, on the west coast of Donegal, Republic of Ireland. (Photo by: Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) It can be a powerful moment for those that live it, as is evidenced by a video from content creator and adventurer Joshua Nueva in Donegal Bay last week. Flanked by a convoy of dolphins, Nueva's humpback emerges from below the surface, leaping up into the air and causing its travelling companions to scatter. Initially, the dolphins appear to be playing with the whale, whose movements generate a sort of slipstream on the surface. 'It's called pec slapping,' Nueva says. 'They take their fin, and they slap it on the water. There's no real data or proof to say why they do that. 'It is a playful behaviour – it's not like they're being threatened, or they feel like they're in danger. Dolphins love to swim with the whales because they're actually quite lazy. 'Whenever there are any boats or large mammals like humpbacks travelling in the direction that they want to go, they swim with it because they don't need to expend as much energy to travel.' Anyone who spots a whale is encouraged to contact the IWDG, as they can identify the animal. Photograph: Joshua Nueva Nueva logged his sighting with the IWDG, who have been documenting whales in Ireland for several decades. Anyone who spots a whale is encouraged to contact the IWDG, as they can identify the animal by its fluke – a uniquely shaped and marked tail that acts as a fingerprint. 'It takes a little while to try and find them because the bay is so vast,' Nueva says. 'When I saw the humpback fin splashing the water, I thought: no way. I couldn't believe it because there were no humpbacks spotted in the bay at that time. It was only then they started to accumulate. 'For us to see it and not be aware of it, it just goes to show what is going on around our coast that we wouldn't notice if we weren't looking for it. If we kept an eye on our coastline a little bit more, we'd be surprised at what we see.'
Irish Times
29-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
‘It's an empty, lifeless sea': Overfishing blamed as whale-watching business closes in Cork
Whales have left Cork waters as sprat, their food source, is in short supply, a Cork-based businessman has said after abandoning tours of the waters. Colin Barnes, who ran a whale-watching boat tour company, has been put out of business after the departure of the cetaceans. Mr Barnes, who ran the company since 2001, said: 'There are only a few whales left - the water is overfished.' Previously, he worked in commercial fishing but gave that up when fishing stocks started to crash. 'It wasn't something I wanted to be a part of,' he said. READ MORE When he first started Cork Whale Watch, his was the only boat engaged in such tourism. 'People looked at me like I was mad,' he said. The business had been a 'raging success' but he says it can no longer offer 'world-class whale-watching'. He explained that the issue is that sprat, an important food source for larger fish, sea birds, seals, dolphins and whales, is being overfished by 'a few greedy morons on huge trawlers'. 'The issue has been going on for over 30 years.' Fishing for sprat was uncommon until the 1980s, he said, but it is now used to make pellets to feed farmed salmon or to add protein to animal feed. 'It's a very important fish, it feeds on plankton and fed the whole ocean,' he said. There is no protection for sprat as, he says, it is 'unimportant and sold for very low prices'. Mr Barnes used the example that sprat is sold for 15 cent per kilogram while rubbish makes 18 cent per kilogram. 'It's worth less than rubbish... It's low value so they have to catch loads for money.' He explained that trawlers only fish for sprat when they are spawning, usually in September and October. During this time, the sprat pack themselves together which allows trawlers to catch many of them at once. Often, two trawlers work together, which is known as pair trawling. 'An ecological disaster' is how Mr Barnes refers to the issue. He first figured out that sprat was being overfished and affecting the number of whales and other sealife in the water in 2008. He wrote a paper, which he published in his Skipper's Log on the Cork Whale Watch website. He says his findings 'fell on deaf ears', adding: 'It's a very sad state of affairs.' Soon, there will be lovely harbours but no fishing boats — Colin Barnes In 2022 and 2023, depletion of stocks was noticeable, while last year he says the waters were 'abysmal'. This year is 'no better'. He said: 'Dolphins and hump whales are gone. I've given it up in disgust. There is loads of plankton but the bird life is gone and the fish are gone. It's an empty, lifeless sea. 'It was probably one of the richest seas in the British Isles – that's why I came to Ireland 53 years ago.' Now, he claims, the whole fishing industry is 'crashing'. 'Soon, there will be lovely harbours but no fishing boats. There will be no fishing stock left.' In 2019, the government attempted to end pair trawling for sprat by large vessels, but the ban was struck down by a High Court appeal and was held up in the appeal court. This allowed large trawlers to resume trawling for sprat, with no requirement for authorisation, inside the six nautical mile zone. In 2024, then-Minister for the Marine, Charlie McConalogue, launched a public consultation to invite views on introducing the ban again. It attracted more than 5,500 submissions. A spokesperson for the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine said: 'The Programme for Government commits to maintaining support for our important inshore fishing sector and promoting the sustainability of fish stocks. [ Ireland must not follow England's example on maintaining waterways Opens in new window ] [ New think tank set up to focus on Irish energy policy Opens in new window ] 'In December 2018, a transition period to a ban on vessels over 18 metres trawling in inshore waters, inside the six nautical mile zone and the baselines, was announced. A significant part of the objective of this measure was to manage the fishing effort on sprat stocks which are primarily targeted within inshore waters. This measure, however, was the subject of extended legal proceedings resulting in the measure being overturned in 2023. 'In February 2024, the Minister of Agriculture, Food and the Marine held a new public consultation on a review of trawling activity inside the six nautical mile zone and the baselines. This consultation took place without prejudice. 'Over 5,500 submissions were received. These submissions, along with updated scientific and economic advice from the Marine Institute and Bord Iascaigh Mhara are being used to inform a review of trawling activity inside the six nautical mile zone and baselines. All relevant issues will be carefully considered before a decision is made.'
