Evidence of hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) depredation on fish caught in gillnets

Frontiers in Marine Science

Marine Science

Yusuf C. El-Khaled¹  Raquel S. Peixoto²  Carlos M. Duarte² 

[1] Red Sea Research Center (RSRC), Division of Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia;Red Sea Research Center (RSRC), Division of Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia;Computational Bioscience Research Center (CBRC), Division of Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia;

关键词: incidental bycatch;    food source;    small-scale fishery;    depredation;    sea turtle;    marine megafauna bycatch;    marine megafauna;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fmars.2023.1180219

 received in 2023-03-05, accepted in 2023-09-27,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Bycatch is a major global threat to marine megafauna and occurs in nearly all fishing fleets, including small-scale fisheries that use gillnets. Gillnets represent a threat to endangered air-breathing megafauna, who incidentally entangle in bottom-set gillnets and suffocate after being attracted by bait that is secured on fishing gear. We here provide the first evidence that hawksbill turtles feed on trapped fish in gillnets, suggesting that potential prey items trapped in gillnets may act as additional bait, attracting carnivorous sea turtles towards this threat. This overlooked depredating behaviour potentially explains and increases the likelihood of critically endangered hawksbill turtle bycatch in gillnet fisheries, calling for technological and management solutions.

【 授权许可】

Unknown   
Copyright © 2023 El-Khaled, Duarte and Peixoto