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Falklands Conservation |
Species of Commercial Interest
The seas around the Falkland Islands are rich fishing grounds, particularly for two important squid species Illex argentinus and Loligo gahi. Other species of commercial value are Southern blue whiting (Micromesistius australis), hake (Merluccius spp.) and whiptail hake/hoki (Macruronus magellanicus). Squid are fished primarily by Far Eastern jiggers whereas the small inshore squid species and other finfish, particularly hake, have been the target of the European bottom trawling fleet.
This large international fishery is controlled by the Falkland Islands Government who permit limited numbers of licensed vessels (about 50 in 1997) to operate within its boundary. Licence conditions dictate that every fishing vessel provides a daily catch report.
In October 1986 the Falkland Islands Interim Conservation and management Zone (FICZ) was introduced. The Falkland Islands Outer Conservation Zone (FOCZ) was set up in December 1990 and extends the FICZ to the north, east and south of the Islands to 200 miles.
The Argentine exclusive economic zone lies to the west of the Falkland Islands Conservation Zones. A number of important species have a transboundary distribution or migration. In recent years both Argentina and the Falkland Islands have closed their respective fisheries for Illex earlier than the scheduled end to the season in order to conserve stocks.
The possible impact of the Falklands fishery upon the Islands' globally significant seabird populations causes some concern.. This is particularly so for penguins and albatrosses. Although gentoo, macaroni and rockhopper penguins take many other prey in addition to the commercially exploited species - and usually small size classes of these than caught by the fishery - there is significant potential, particularly for gentoo and macaroni penguins, for their food supply to be affected by the commercial fishery.
The diet of the Black-browed Albatross (the Falklands is the breeding site for 85% of the world population) overlaps extensively with commercial catches. It feeds predominantly on large fish and squid notably during the chick-rearing season (February - April). Their surface feeding habits make them susceptible to direct mortality through entanglement in fishing gear, particularly the baited hooks of the longline fisheries.
Falkland Birds Killed by Longline Fisheries
The limited number of longliners within the Falklands Fishing Zones have adopted techniques to reduce the mortality of albatrosses such as the use of streamer lines. Elsewhere over the Patagonian Shelf, from Uruguay to Tierra del Fuego, thousands of Falkland albatrosses are more seriously at risk. Hundreds of Black-browed Albatross are killed on single sets of longline, several thousand of which take place during a fishing season. It cannot be long before Falklands' populations, once increasing (presumably through benefits from discards and offal from local trawl and jig fisheries) begin to be affected. Falklands Conservation are pressing for the compulsory use of measures to protect albatrosses throughout all longline fisheries and especially the Patagonian Shelf.
Falklands Conservation established The Falkland Islands Seabird Monitoring Programme in 1989 to monitor the impact of Falkland fisheries on the breeding seabirds in the Islands. Trends in seabird populations and their feeding ecology have been assessed annually through a regular census at selected seabird colonies, long term monitoring of adult survival in study groups of individual birds, annual monitoring of breeding numbers, diet sampling and monitoring of chick growth rates. The Programme is funded by the Falkland Islands Government. Further information and annual results are available on request.
An Assessment of the Potential for Competition between Seabirds and Fisheries in the Falkland Islands. Dr K R Thompson. 1989. 94pp
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Patron: HRH The Duke of York CVO ADC Member of the International Union for Conservation of Nature | BirdLife International Representative |
