A recent study published in the journal Environmental Pollution found plastics in the scat of fishing cats dwelling in urban areas near Colombo, Sri Lanka. Different sizes of plastics, from micro to macro, were found in some samples, and were believed to have been ingested by the cats via theirContinue Reading
If the term “illegal fishing” conjures images of small numbers of scattered vessels independently pirating the sea’s resources, think again. The problem of Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing stems increasingly from state-supported deep water fishing fleets, including massive trawlers accompanied by sustainment vessels, freezer, and transport vessels. Operating continuouslyContinue Reading
ST. PETERSBURG — A coalition of Florida environmental groups on Thursday urged federal wildlife officials to intervene to prevent more seabirds from becoming entangled in fishing gear at the popular Skyway Fishing Pier State Park. In a letter to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, six advocacy organizations said theContinue Reading
ST. PETERSBURG — Florida wildlife officials are weighing new rules for anglers at Skyway Fishing Pier State Park after thousands of birds were entangled in fishing gear over the past two years. Since January 2021, at least 3,300 seabirds required rescue from the pier after they were hooked or wrappedContinue Reading
A trip to the remote north Pacific gyre provides a stark reality check on the scale of the planet’s plastic waste crisis. “You’ve been sailing at 10 knots for five days, you’re alone. You don’t see any other boats. And then you find toothbrushes and lighters floating around you,” saysContinue Reading
Since around 20% of the marine plastic they collect is fishing gear, Enaleia encourages fishermen to keep their nets out of the sea by upcycling them preemptively. Enaleia founder Lefteris Arapakis assists with these efforts. (Photo: Courtesy of Enaleia) By some estimates by weight there could be more plastic thanContinue Reading
Naude and Katja Dreyer became emotional as they shared the story of a seal that they attempted to cut free from a mire of painful, dangerous trash. And they had to do so not just once, but twice. Through their private organization Ocean Conservation Namibia (OCN), Naude and Katja find Cape furContinue Reading
Editor’s Note: This story is part of a series on climate change and labor produced in partnership with the Solutions Journalism Network. Fishing is in Lance Nacio’s DNA. When his great-grandfather came to the U.S., he settled in a fishing community called Manilla Village and made a living working theContinue Reading
NPFC. 8th Meeting of the Small Scientific Committee on Pacific Saury Report. NPFC-2021-SSC PS08-Final Report. Preprint at https://www.npfc.int/meetings/8th-ssc-ps-meeting (2021). Hubbs, C. L. & Wisner, R. L. Revision of the sauries (Pisces, Scomberesocidae) with descriptions of two new genera and one new species. Fish. Bull. 77, 521–566 (1980). Google Scholar Tian,Continue Reading
Lost or abandoned fishing gear can continue ‘ghost fishing’ for decades. Credit: Shutterstock/Richard Whitcombe Ocean plastic pollution was a focus at the recent UN oceans conference, which issued a declaration in support of an earlier decision by the UN Environment Assembly to start negotiations for a global plastics treaty. ThisContinue Reading
