In an effort to head off the extinction of the black-footed albatross, environmentalists filed a petition with the US Fish and Wildlife Service to list the species under the Endangered Species Act. The recent reopening of the Hawaii-based longline fishery for swordfish will likely result in the drowning deaths of several thousand black-footed albatross each year.
“Unless we act now, longlining will cause the extinction of the black-footed albatross. The action we took today begins the process of getting the bird listed under the Endangered Species Act, which will protect the species far better than relying on the good will of the fishing industry,” said Paul Achitoff, Earthjustice attorney representing the Center for Biological Diversity and Turtle Island Restoration Network, the two petitioning organizations. Achitoff added, “Unfortunately, we have seen too little good will and too many dead albatross.”
The black-footed albatross, a seabird that nests almost exclusively in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, with a small population nesting in Japan, has a wingspan extending over six feet and spends much of its life on the wing, scooping flying fish eggs, squid and fish from the ocean surface. The birds also forage along the western coast of the United States.
Black-footed albatross are fairly long-lived birds that have evolved a successful life history somewhat analogous to humans. They mate for life, lay only one egg per year, and if one of the pair dies, it can take three or more years before the living partner finds another mate and begins to reproduce again. These life history traits make them highly susceptible to extinction when animals of reproductive age are killed.
Albatross play an important role not only in marine biodiversity, but Hawaiian culture as well.
While the most serious current threat to the species comes when the birds become entangled and drown when they go after the baited hooks set by the industrial longline fishing industry to catch swordfish and tuna, the bird’s population was decimated in the early 20th century by hunters who shot the birds for their plumes, eliminating the species from many nesting islands throughout the Pacific.
The world experts on the status of seabirds, BirdLife International and the World Conservation Union, have recently concluded that the black-footed albatross should be classified as Endangered. Scientists estimate that only about 60,000 nesting pairs survive today, and that unless actions are taken to reduce the current level of human-caused mortality, the species will likely go extinct in the coming decades. As many as 14,000 black-footed albatross are estimated killed by longline fishing each year.
Globally, nineteen of the twenty-one recognized albatross species are considered threatened with extinction. In each case, a primary threat is longline fishing. “The international longline industry is setting nearly 10 billion baited hooks a year, killing over 300,000 seabirds each year. Albatross populations simply cannot withstand these levels of mortality,” said Brendan Cummings of the Center for Biological Diversity. “Solutions exist to help keep significant numbers of albatross off the deadly hooks, but the longline fishery has been, at best, slow to adopt them,” he continued.
Albatross and other sea birds dive at the baited hooks as they are deployed, become hooked and are dragged underwater where they drown. Various methods have been devised to scare the birds away or to make the hooks sink faster, decreasing the number of birds killed. Yet most fishing vessels are not using these techniques. The Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council has urged that the most effective measures be voluntary.
The Center for Biological Diversity, Turtle Island, and Earthjustice have been working to reduce the impacts of longline fishing on a number of marine species, including endangered sea turtles, marlin, whales and dolphins. More than 600 of the world’s most prominent scientists have called on the United Nations to declare a moratorium on pelagic longlining to prevent the extinction of the Pacific leatherback and other species. Current studies estimate that longline fishing in the Pacific alone captures more than three millions sharks, 40,000 sea turtles, and tens of thousands of seabirds in its quest for large fish.
“Solving the problem for seabirds must be done immediately, but as long as we allow longliners to deploy billions of hooks every year, indiscriminately hooking marine wildlife species by the millions, our oceans won’t be safe,” said Todd Steiner of Turtle Island Restoration Network. “If we don’t act soon, longline fishing will empty our oceans and our skies.”
View photo of black-footed albatross that can be used for publication.
Photo credit: Bradford Keitt
Ili kuzuia kutoweka kwa albatros, wanaharakati wa mazingira waliwasilisha ombi kwa Huduma ya Samaki na Wanyamapori ya Marekani ili kuorodhesha spishi hiyo chini ya Sheria ya Spishi Zilizokabili Hatari. Uvuvi wa samaki wa aina ya swordfish unaoendelea katika eneo la Hawaii, unaoendelea kwa muda mrefu, umesababisha vifo vya maelfu ya samaki aina ya albatros. <unk>Isipokuwa tutachukua hatua sasa, uvuvi wa nyuzi za juu utasababisha kutoweka kwa albatrosi mwenye miguu nyeusi. "Hatua tulichukua leo inaanza mchakato wa kupata ndege iliyoorodheshwa chini ya Sheria ya Spishi Zilizohatarishwa, ambayo italinda spishi hiyo vizuri zaidi kuliko kutegemea mapenzi mazuri ya tasnia ya uvuvi, ""alisema Paul Achitoff, mwanasheria wa Earthjustice akiwakilisha Kituo cha Utofauti wa Kibiolojia na Mtandao wa Kurudisha Kisiwa cha Turtle." "Achiff aliongeza, ""Kwa bahati mbaya, tumeona mapenzi machache sana na albatros nyingi sana zilizokufa."" albatros ya miguu nyeusi, ndege wa baharini ambaye huishi karibu tu katika Visiwa vya Kaskazini Magharibi vya Hawaii, na idadi ndogo ya watu wanaofanya viota nchini Japan, ana upana wa mabawa zaidi ya futi sita na hutumia maisha yake mengi juu ya mabawa, akichukua mayai ya samaki, squid na samaki kutoka uso wa bahari." Ndege hao pia hutafuta chakula kwenye pwani ya magharibi ya Marekani. Albatross wenye miguu nyeusi ni ndege wenye maisha marefu ambao wamefanikiwa katika historia ya maisha kama ya wanadamu. Wao hujiunga na wenzi wao wa ndoa kwa maisha yao yote, na huweka yai moja tu kwa mwaka, na ikiwa mmoja wao anakufa, inaweza kuchukua miaka mitatu au zaidi kabla ya mwenzi aliye hai kupata mwenzi mwingine na kuanza kuzaliana tena. Sifa hizo za historia ya maisha huwafanya wawe na uwezekano mkubwa wa kutoweka wanyama wanaokuwa katika umri wa kuzaa wanapouawa. Albatross hutimiza fungu muhimu si katika utofauti wa viumbe wa baharini tu, bali pia katika utamaduni wa Hawaii. Wakati tishio kubwa kwa spishi hii linatokea wakati ndege wanapozunguka na kuzama baada ya kutumia ndoano zilizowekwa na viwanda vya uvuvi wa nyuzi za nyuzi za nyuzi ili kuvua samaki wa upanga na tuna, idadi ya ndege hiyo iliharibiwa mapema karne ya 20 na wawindaji ambao waliwaua ndege kwa ajili ya manyoya yao, na kuondoa spishi kutoka visiwa vingi vya kuzaliana. Wataalamu wa hali ya ndege wa baharini duniani, BirdLife International na Umoja wa Uhifadhi wa Dunia, wamekata kauli hivi karibuni kwamba albatros mwenye miguu nyeusi anapaswa kuainishwa kama ndege anayehatarishwa. Wanasayansi wanakadiria kwamba ni jozi 60,000 tu za ndege wanaofanya viota ambazo ziko hai leo, na kwamba isipokuwa hatua zitokazo kuchukuliwa ili kupunguza kiwango cha sasa cha vifo vinavyosababishwa na wanadamu, huenda spishi hiyo ikaangamia katika miongo ijayo. Inakadiriwa kwamba karibu albatrosi 14,000 wa miguu nyeusi huuawa kila mwaka kwa kuvua kwa nyuzi za uvuvi. Ulimwenguni pote, spishi kumi na tisa kati ya spishi ishirini na moja zinazotambuliwa za albatros huonwa kuwa ziko hatarini mwa kutoweka. Katika kila kisa, tisho kuu ni uvuvi wa kwa nyuzi za kunyongwa. "Kampuni ya kimataifa ya kutengeneza nyuzi za kuogelea kwa kutumia nyuzi za kuogelea kwa kutumia nyuzi za kuogelea kwa kutumia nyuzi za kuogelea kwa kutumia nyuzi za kuogelea kwa kutumia nyuzi za kuogelea kwa kutumia nyuzi za kuogelea kwa kutumia nyuzi za kuogelea kwa kutumia nyuzi za kuogelea kwa kutumia nyuzi za kuogelea kwa kutumia nyuzi za kuogelea.""" Idadi ya albatrosi haiwezi kuvumilia viwango hivi vya vifo, <unk> alisema Brendan Cummings wa Kituo cha Tofauti ya Kibiolojia. "Mafuniko yapo kusaidia kuweka idadi kubwa ya albatros mbali na ndoano za mauti, lakini uvuvi wa longline umekuwa, kwa hali nzuri, polepole kuitumia", aliendelea. Albatross na ndege wengine wa baharini huogelea kwenye ndoano zilizowekwa kama mtego, wanashikamana na kuvutwa chini ya maji ambapo wanazama. Mbinu mbalimbali zimetengenezwa ili kuogopesha ndege au kufanya ndoano zianguke haraka, na hivyo kupunguza idadi ya ndege wanaouawa. Hata hivyo, meli nyingi za uvuvi hazitumii mbinu hizo. Baraza la Usimamizi wa Uvuvi la Mkoa wa Pasifiki Magharibi limehimiza kwamba hatua zenye matokeo zaidi ziwe za hiari. Kituo cha Biolojia ya Biolojia, Turtle Island na Earthjustice wamekuwa wakifanya kazi kupunguza athari za uvuvi wa longline kwa spishi kadhaa za baharini, pamoja na kasa wa bahari, marlin, nyangumi na pomboo. Wanasayansi zaidi ya 600 duniani wametoa wito kwa Umoja wa Mataifa kutangaza marufuku ya uvuvi wa nyangumi ili kuzuia kutoweka kwa samaki aina ya leatherback na aina nyingine za samaki. Kulingana na ripoti ya utafiti wa hivi karibuni, uvuvi wa nyuzi za uvuvi katika Bahari ya Pasifiki pekee huchukua zaidi ya papa milioni tatu, kasa 40,000 wa baharini, na maelfu ya ndege wa baharini katika utafutaji wake wa samaki wakubwa. "Kutatua tatizo la ndege wa baharini lazima kufanywe mara moja, lakini maadamu tunaruhusu longliners kupeleka mabilioni ya hooks kila mwaka, indiscriminately hooking spishi za wanyama wa baharini kwa mamilioni, bahari zetu hazitakuwa salama, "alisema Todd Steiner wa Turtle Island Restoration Network." <unk>Ikiwa hatutende haraka, uvuvi wa longline utaondoa bahari zetu na anga zetu.<unk> Tazama picha ya albatros ya miguu nyeusi ambayo inaweza kutumika kwa uchapishaji. Picha: Bradford Keitt