Exploring the Benefits of Collaborative Fisheries Research and Conservation Engineering to Reduce Bycatch and Bycatch Mortality Part 1

Recreational and commercial fisheries sustainability and productivity are often inextricably linked with bycatch and bycatch mortality. High levels of bycatch can result in penalties to fishermen, and can lead to fishery closures, as well as declines and alterations in a fish population or ecosystem. In an attempt to reduce levels of bycatch and bycatch mortality, fishermen and scientists have worked collaboratively to identify and test mitigation approaches. The collective knowledge and diverse skill-sets of these disparate, yet aligned stakeholder groups promote effective research as well as industry “buy-in”.  Under the umbrella of collaborative research, conservation engineering has been an enduring theme.  These types of studies endeavor to find technical solutions to mitigate bycatch through the evaluation, development, and modification of fishing gears and their operation.  In addition to conservation engineering efforts, studies to determine the rates of bycatch and bycatch mortality are garnering increasing interest worldwide.  In aggregate, information from these types of collaborative research studies describe fundamental fisheries processes as well as offer applied solutions critical for fisheries management.