Dolphin bycatch meeting in Nuremberg

Bycatch in fishing nets is by far the biggest threat to many dolphin species. Although various methods have been developed and applied to reduce bycatch, there is still much debate about the effectiveness of these measures. Especially in the long run.

Bycatch meeting dolphins Nuremberg Zoo
Picture from left to right: Tim Hüttner, Ralph Simon, Daniel Stepputtis, Lorenzo von Fersen, Martin Böye, Enrique Crespo, Pedro Fruet, Boris Culik, Federico Sucunza (+ Thomas Noack)

Against this background, a small meeting with scientists from Germany, France, Brazil and Argentina took place in the Nuremberg Zoo on the weekend of May 6 and 7, 2023. This meeting took place at the invitation of YAQU PACHA, which also covered the costs. The objective of this meeting was to analyze the methods currently used and to consider how and to what extent these methods can be applied to the bycatch problem in two regions. First, in France, where the focus is on industrial fisheries, but where other coastal fisheries with gillnets also cause high bycatch rates of small cetaceans.

Bycatch Dolphins Conference Nuremberg Zoo

The second project discussed at the meeting concerns the dolphin species most affected by bycatch in the South Atlantic: the franciscana. Under the leadership of Dr. Federico Sucunza, a pilot project is currently underway to test bycatch mitigation methods.

Bycatch Franciscana dolphin Federico Sucunza

All participants agreed that both projects deserve expert attention and promised to work together to find solutions. In the case of Franciscana in particular, based on the weekend's discussions, work is now underway on a four-year project to test four different bycatch reduction methods in a bycatch hotspot.
Initial proposals to raise the necessary funds have already been prepared. Another larger follow-up meeting is planned.