Nets taking yellow-eyed penguins to extinction
Academics are calling for urgent Government action to help save the yellow-eyed penguin from extinction.
In a world-first review of penguin bycatch, the endangered bird, known as hoiho in te reo Ma¯ ori, were identified as one of three penguin species of significant concern.
They are under threat from set nets – walls of fine nylon mesh used to catch fish by the gills. These are used by about 330 commercial fishing boats in New Zealand waters, as well as by recreational fishermen.
Otago University PhD graduate and New Zealand penguin scientist Dr Ursula Ellenberg, who initiated the global review, said: ‘‘Diving birds like penguins are unable to see the fine mesh underwater, and become entangled and drown.
‘‘In the past 20 years, yelloweyed penguins have declined by 76 per cent at previous population strongholds. We have reached the point where every bird counts.’’
There are only 246 breeding pairs left on the South Island.
Local community groups, tourist operators, and researchers collaborate with governmental agencies to control predators, restore breeding habitat, and manage visitors around breeding colonies.
But Ellenberg said conservation measures on land were not enough.
‘‘It’s the threats at sea we are most concerned about,’’ she said.
‘‘Whereas there is no quick fix for climate change or marine habitat degradation, there is one thing we can do immediately to improve their chances of survival. We can stop drowning them in set nets.’’
Forest and Bird seabird advocate Karen Baird said the Ministry for Primary Industries had previously assessed the risk from fisheries bycatch to mainland yellow-eyed penguins but had failed to act to protect penguin, or threatened marine mammals from commercial fishing.
The review recommended fisheries observers or video monitoring on vessels to monitor bycatch, and managing set net fisheries in important penguin foraging areas to reduce bycatch deaths.
‘‘But for the yellow-eyed penguin, the situation is so urgent that we also need to immediately establish set net closures in important yellow-eyed penguin foraging areas,’’ Baird said.
Ellenberg said restrictions on set netting would benefit other penguin species and marine mammals being caught, such as Hector’s dolphins.
‘‘The aim of such management is to make sure that nets are not set in areas that are important foraging hotspots for threatened species.
‘‘Setting the nets at night can considerably reduce the bycatch of penguins since these are visual hunters and mostly forage during daylight hours.’’
Scientists had observed in recent years an increasing number of ‘‘loners on empty nest bowls, penguins that wait and call for their partners that have been lost at sea and will never return’’.
‘‘It’s really disheartening,’’ Ellenberg said.
The other at-risk species identified in the review were Humboldt and Magellanic penguins, both found in South America.