Fish by-catch in the Antarctic krill fishery

Fish bycatch is a global problem requiring accurate information to develop conservation and management strategies.

Within the Antarctic krill fishery, fish and larval fish are regularly observed as bycatch. Improved understanding of where, when and which fish are caught is essential.

Within the fishery, fish bycatch has become an issue of such importance that there is a sense of urgency and a requirement to develop appropriate life history stage specific identification materials, underpinned by molecular techniques to enable accurate identification of bycatch species.

Developing conservation and management measures that limit bycatch of non-target species by commercial fishing operations require robust data. Current management measures primarily aim to reduce the risk to land-based predators (e.g., seals and penguins) and do not take into consideration fish bycatch.

This project aims to identify which fish species and life stages are caught using integrative taxonomy methods; assess the spatial distribution of fish bycatch to understand which, where and when each species is caught; and use this information to establish a baseline assessment for fish bycatch and produce identification and training tools for international fisheries observers.