WASHINGTON: Sea turtles can get accidentally caught and killed in fishing operations, and new research out Monday seeks to map this phenomenon for the first time in a bid to save the endangered creatures.
The study in the journal Ecosphere said sea turtles in the East Pacific, North Atlantic, Southwest Atlantic and Mediterranean face the highest bycatch mortality rates.
However, not enough is known about the problem in much of the world, with “significant data gaps” in the Indian Ocean and the waters off Africa and southeast Asia highlighting the “urgent need for increased monitoring,” said the study.
“We lose hundreds or thousands of turtles each year in populations that are already at risk. Many sea turtle populations around the world could face local extinction if we don’t reduce bycatch,” said lead author Bryan Wallace of Duke University.
Researchers also found that near-shore fisheries pose a significant threat to turtles, rivalling that of large scale, open ocean fisheries. — AFP