Intensive fishing hits bird breeding

New research led by the RSPB shows that UK seabird populations could be affected by the amount of a critical fish species caught in the North Sea.

Monitoring sandeels, and a small species of gull named kittiwakes, the study found that higher intensity fishing could be linked to lower breeding success for the bird.

In the North Sea, sandeels provide a vital food source for breeding seabirds but are also the target of an industrial fishery conducted mainly by Denmark.

The Dogger Bank area, straddling UK, Netherlands and German waters, supports a high density of sandeels, and is also evidently a popular feeding ground for seabirds, raising the prospect that the fishery there could adversely affect the birds’ populations.

According to the RSPB, the study highlights the importance of continuing to work with other countries on fisheries management.