New Fisheries Report Proves Bottom Trawling Kills Hector’s Dolphins

The Hector’s dolphins Bycatch Reduction Annual Plan released today (17 April 2025), shows that recently introduced fishing management methods are killing more Hector’s dolphins than ever reported before. The Annual Plan shows that in particular, twelve of the fifteen Hector’s dolphin deaths in the 2023-4 reporting period were killed by the controversial method of bottom trawling. All deaths were in 10-23 metres of water and at speeds under 3 nautical miles (nm) an hour, methods proposed by the industry as bycatch mitigation. Six of those deaths were within 2nm of shore - core Hector’s habitat.

Māui and Hector’s Dolphin Defenders founder and chair, Christine Rose says ‘these fishing methods, proven to wipe out record numbers of Hector’s dolphins, should simply be not allowed in dolphin habitat’.

On at least four occasions, the same fishing boats killed Hector’s dolphins then went out and killed more. Despite the Bycatch Reduction Plan’s ‘escalating response’, which relies on voluntary adherence, in five instances, the fishing industry ignored areas ‘closed’ where dolphins had been killed.

Rose says ‘Self-regulation and voluntary measures that aren’t adhered to just play into the industry’s continued destruction of Māui and Hector’s dolphins. These fishing methods in these areas must simply be banned’.

In at least one instance within the 2023-4 reporting period, a Hector’s dolphin killed was falsely reported as another species.

While the Annual Report focuses on the impact to fishers from area closures and not the impacts on dolphin extinction, the report does confirm that bottom trawling kills Hector’s dolphins - a fact not accounted for in previous modeling, not addressed in the Māui and Hector’s dolphins Threat Management Plan (TMP), and not addressed by the Bycatch Reduction Plan (BRP).

Slow trawl speeds and low net heights were promoted by the industry and adopted by the previous government, to address the known fact that trawl and set nets kill Māui and Hector’s dolphins. But the Bycatch Reduction Plan Annual Report shows that these methods, bottom trawling in particular, kill more Hector’s dolphins, than ever admitted before. This should be a concern for all New Zealanders.

‘The only solution is to get trawl and set nets out of the dolphins habitat. This government, and previous governments, have failed the dolphins, and failed New Zealanders. We call on the Prime Minister Christopher Luxon to show leadership and get the crony and conflicted Oceans and Fisheries Minister into line, out of his current role, and protect Māui and Hector’s dolphins throughout their range’.

The Bycatch Reduction Plan Annual Report 2023-4, can be found here: https://www.mpi.govt.nz/dmsdocument/68775-South-Island-Hectors-Dolphin-Bycatch-Reduction-Plan-Annual-Report-202324

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