DA NANG, Vietnam — Industrial-scale fishers will no longer be able to use two types of shark-fishing gear in the western and central Pacific Ocean after the international body in charge of tuna fisheries there agreed to ban the devices. The measure, adopted last week at the annual meeting of the Western and Central Pacific […]
Tag: fishing gear
To boost fish catches, try banning fishing, new study shows
In 2016, Barack Obama, the U.S. president at the time, made a proclamation: he would expand the protection of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, a stretch of ocean fringing the islands and atolls of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands that native Hawaiians consider to be sacred. Ten years earlier, his predecessor, George W. Bush had protected […]
Hundreds of Emaciated Sea Turtles Wash Up on Texas Beaches, Experts Try to Figure Out Why
Hundreds of emaciated sea turtles have stranded themselves on Texas beaches this year, stunning experts. From April 1 to August 19 this year, the total of washed-up turtles reached 282, and experts are scrambling to figure out why. Most of the turtles have washed up dead in the coastal areas between Calhoun and Kleberg counties. […]
Dugongs (Related to Manatees) Declared Functionally Extinct in China
The human imagination once transformed dugongs into mermaids. But now, human activity is pushing the gentle marine mammals into the realm of the imagination in a more sinister way. A new study published in Royal Society Open Science Wednesday found that the dugong (dugong dugon) is “functionally extinct” in Chinese waters. “The likely disappearance of […]
More Than 30 Endangered Green Sea Turtles Found Stabbed on Japanese Island
Police are investigating the mysterious injuries of more than 30 endangered green sea turtles on the remote Japanese island of Kumejima. The turtles – discovered by locals July 14 – had been stabbed in their necks and flippers and were lying motionless on the beach, The Asahi Shimbun reported. The locals then alerted employees at […]
Dead Orca Caught in Fishing Gear Off Oregon Coast
A dead orca carcass was seen wrapped in fishing gear off the coast of Oregon, which triggered a search to recover what may be the first dead killer whale in the state. A fisherman from Salem, Oregon, posted a picture of the orca wrapped in fishing gear on iFish.com. The fisherman thinks that the orca […]
Over 47 tons of plastic found at US marine reserve – and an entangled seal
In a span of just over three weeks, more than 47 tons of plastic waste were removed from America’s largest protected marine reserve, sometimes directly off animals, a stark reminder of the scourge of plastic pollution in the world’s oceans. An expedition spent 24 days clearing 10 miles of shoreline in the atolls and islands […]
Petition: Stop the Slaughter of Seal Pups in Namibia!
Marine animals in general are suffering due to the terrible ways we are devastating our oceans with plastic. Seals, are one of the many marine animals currently struggling with the invasion of plastic, ghost fishing gear, and litter along their habitats. They are sadly common victims of entanglement. You would think that no one would […]