BECAS
GÓNGORA MarÍa Eva
artículos
Título:
Factors affecting Magellanic Penguin mortality at coastal trawlers in Patagonia, Argentina.
Autor/es:
MARINAO CRISTIAN; GÓNGORA MARÍA EVA; GONZALEZ ZEVALLOS DIEGO; YORIO PABLO
Revista:
OCEAN & COASTAL MANAGEMENT
Editorial:
ELSEVIER SCI LTD
Referencias:
Lugar: Amsterdam; Año: 2014 vol. 93 p. 100 - 105
ISSN:
0964-5691
Resumen:
Incidental capture at trawlers has been recognized as a significant source of seabird mortality, and is
considered one of the main threats to seabirds at sea. The understanding of seabirdefishery interactions
and of factors influencing individual mortality is fundamental to develop management actions and help
protect seabird populations. We quantified seasonal and annual variability in Magellanic Penguin
(Spheniscus magellanicus) incidental captures and explored factors which may be influencing their bycatch
at coastal trawlers targeting either Argentine Red Shrimp (Pleoticus muelleri) or Argentine Hake
(Merluccius hubbsi) in the Isla Escondida fishing area, Argentina, for the months encompassing most of
the penguin?s breeding period (OctobereFebruary) of the 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2012 fishing seasons
(n ¼ 2 336 hauls). A total of 203 penguins were incidentally caught in nets, with rates that varied between
months and years. Mean monthly capture rate was 0.087 birds haul1, and ranged between 0.01
and 2.07 birds per haul. All captured penguins were adult individuals. Incidental capture occurred almost
exclusively when targeting Argentine Hake (97.5% of cases) and during 2009. Incidental captures were
more likely to occur when vessels operated closer to penguin colonies, with 85% of incidental captures
occurring at less than 45 km. Vessels targeting hake operated significantly closer to the colonies than
those targeting shrimp. Incidental capture of Magellanic Penguins in coastal trawlers in the study area
appears to be highly variable and relatively low. Our results suggest that in the event Magellanic Penguin
mortality at coastal trawlers becomes a conservation issue, spatial and temporal closures focused on the
Argentine hake could be used as potential measures to reduce penguin by-catch, complementing the
effective implementation of a marine protected área.