Background:
In the UK, the extent, impact and drivers of interactions between marine predators, such as seals, and fisheries remains unknown. In 2020, the UK Special Committee on Seals, which advises government on seal management, highlighted this as a key knowledge gap to improve future management of fisheries and seals in the UK. In addition, a metanalysis paper (Jackson et al. 2022) highlighted that the UK has a high potential for pinniped-fisheries interactions, however, there was no data point available for this country.
We aim to fill this major knowledge gap to assist future management efforts.
What we've been doing:
We have been collecting data on seal depredation (fisheries catch that is partially eaten by seals) and interviewing fishers to assess the impact of seal interactions on UK fisheries and to gauge the trend in interactions over time, as our depredation data will only account for the present interactions. This has been conducted on vessels under 10m with a variety of gear types and target species, from ports around the UK. Our interviews were held in person or over the phone and asked questions relating to the historical interactions and economic loss. We have currently interviewed fishers from over 40 ports!
Analysing these differences will allow us to assess which fisheries are most affected, economically, by seal interactions. The results will be shared with policy makers and participants to improve management of seal-fisheries interactions.
Want to participate?
If you are interested in our research and would like to participate, please contact us on: claire.tanner@biology.ox.ac.uk
