Japanese Prime Minister's visit:
PM asked to put extinction of albatross on the agenda
Forest and Bird is calling on the Prime Minister to put albatross extinction on the agenda for the Japanese Prime
Minister's visit. Forest and Bird is participating in an international campaign to save the albatross, coordinated by
Birdlife International.
"Many of New Zealand's albatross and petrel species are threatened with extinction by long-line fishing," says Eric
Pyle, Forest and Bird's Conservation Manager. "Japanese longline fleets catch these birds and Japanese boats need to do
more to reduce seabird by-catch."
Albatross and petrel conservation is a huge issue for New Zealand. "We have more endemic albatross and petrel species
than any other country. Many New Zealand albatross and petrel species are doomed to extinction unless there are major
changes to fisheries practices around the world."
Well over 300,000 seabirds are caught around the world each year. There are a range of measures for reducing seabird
deaths from longlining operations. These include; Tori or bird lines and night setting, using weighted hooks, not
dumping of offal while longlines are set.
"We hope that the issue of albatross and petrel deaths in fisheries is high Helen Clark's agenda with the Japanese Prime
Minister," says Mr Pyle.
Ends