Runner-Up Turtle Lights for Gillnets
Runner Up Winner ($10,000) – Turtle Lights for Gillnets
Shara Fisler and John Wang, U.S.A.
The Turtle Lights for Gillnets and their ability to reduce the bycatch of turtles has the potential to be an effective device for turtle conservation all over the world. The idea uses widely available fishing lights (LED or chemical lightsticks) to illuminate gillnets and trials have reduced green turtle interactions by 60% without affecting target catch rates or catch value.
Coastal gillnet fisheries are one of the most common forms of fishing throughout the world and are often problematic because of their non-selective impacts. Gillnet fisheries have been associated with significant sea turtle bycatch rates.
Illuminating gillnets can be accomplished in many ways. One of the simplest is with either LED or chemi-luminescent lightsticks. Lightsticks are globally available, already employed in a variety of fisheries (e.g. pelagic longline fisheries), and available at a range of costs The use of lights to illuminate gillnets in order to reduce sea turtle bycatch has not been tested in gillnets fisheries prior to this research and is a creative use of a widely available product.
Future work will incorporate testing in Brazil and Peru, as well as testing on additional species including loggerheads and leatherbacks. This work will also test additional light spectrum with preliminary trials suggesting UV spectrum may also selectively alert sea turtles.
Coastal gillnet fisheries are one of the most common forms of fishing throughout the world and are often problematic because of their non-selective impacts. Gillnet fisheries have been associated with significant sea turtle bycatch rates.
Illuminating gillnets can be accomplished in many ways. One of the simplest is with either LED or chemi-luminescent lightsticks. Lightsticks are globally available, already employed in a variety of fisheries (e.g. pelagic longline fisheries), and available at a range of costs The use of lights to illuminate gillnets in order to reduce sea turtle bycatch has not been tested in gillnets fisheries prior to this research and is a creative use of a widely available product.
Conservation Potential
The experimental work for this project was undertaken in Baja in an area with high concentrations of green turtles. The team hypothesize that illuminating nets creates enough of a visual cue to alert sea turtles to the presence of a barrier, allowing them to avoid it. Anecdotal evidence suggests that sea turtles swim up to an illuminated net and move along side it until they turn away.Future work will incorporate testing in Brazil and Peru, as well as testing on additional species including loggerheads and leatherbacks. This work will also test additional light spectrum with preliminary trials suggesting UV spectrum may also selectively alert sea turtles.
