To preserve biodiversity and protect whales and dolphins, the European Parliament hosted an expert meeting in Brussels.
Dr. Lorenzo von Fersen (Chairman of YAQU PACHA) was invited to this event and reported on our projects to reduce bycatch of dolphin species such as the critically endangered La Plata dolphin —Franciscana—and our strategies for avoiding bycatch. In this work, YAQU PACHA collaborates closely with fishermen and fishing communities.
The event was initiated by MEP Gabriel Mato and the Loro Parque Foundation in collaboration with the IUCN Species Survival Commission and WAZA. In addition to researchers Javier Almunia Portolés, Boris Culik, and Lorenzo von Fersen, Martin Böye, the scientific director of our partner Planète Sauvage, presented the collaboration between zoos and research institutions as well as with fishermen. He reported on the strategies developed to counteract the bycatch of dolphins and whales in fishing nets. Professor Boris Culik presented the results of his work on protecting dolphins using acoustic signals (pingers) to keep dolphins away from fishing nets.
We are very pleased that our organization is involved in such important European Parliament projects for the conservation of biodiversity.
