"The annual incidental bycatch of seabirds by demersal groundfish longline vessels in Alaska has ranged between 4,100 and 26,300 during the period 1993 through 2006. However, average annual bycatch has declined by 73% in the last 5 years (2002-2006) compared to bycatch from the late 1990s. Despite the recent reductions resulting from mandatory mitigation requirements, seabirds continue to be caught at higher rates than would be expected given results of controlled studies that demonstrated bycatch reductions of nearly 100% with paired streamer lines. We characterize recent seabird bycatch data (2004-2007) from the Alaska demersal longline fisheries and analyze factors influencing seabird bycatch for two fisheries - Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus) and sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria). Previous analyses of 1995-2000 bycatch data showed that individual vessel was the single most important source of variability in seabird bycatch rates in Alaska longline fisheries. Certain vessels consistently caught a higher proportion of birds across years and fisheries. Our results demonstrate that a few individual vessels continue to be responsible for the majority of seabird bycatch. Six vessels out of 39 contribute 38% of all birds caught in the cod demersal longline fishery when sampled rates are extrapolated to hooks deployed in observed sets. Based on this analysis, we recommend a variety of methods to further reduce seabird bycatch by longline vessels in Alaska."--P. iii.

In the 1970's the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) was made to manage our oceanic and atmospheric resources. The Alaska Fisheries Science Center is the research branch for marine life and coastal oceans off parts of the U.S. west coast and Alaska. This includes the Eastern Bering Sea where some the worlds most important commercial fishing takes place. Their mission is to develop and maintain scientific exploration to help understand and manage that region's environment. Over the years there have been many reports published which discuss their findings; this is one of them.

"Seabirds are unintentionally caught in commercial fisheries off Alaska; this unintentional catch is referred to as bycatch. Federal law requires bycatch be minimized to the extent practicable, and specific modifications to fishing gear and practices are required by Federal regulation to reduce seabird bycatch. Off Alaska, most seabird bycatch occurs in fisheries using hook-andline (primarily longline) gear. Compliance with seabird avoidance regulations has decreased seabird bycatch by thousands of birds in fisheries using demersal longline gear off Alaska; however, hundreds (often thousands) of seabirds are still taken as bycatch in the fisheries each year. NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries) annually updates estimates of seabirds caught as bycatch in commercial groundfish fisheries operating in Federal waters off Alaska. This annual report provides detailed seabird bycatch estimates by gear type for the years 2007 through 2015 and supplements "Seabird Bycatch and Mitigation Efforts in Alaska Fisheries Summary Report: 2007 through 2015" (Eich et al. 2016). This report presents estimates from the gear types hook-and-line (specifically demersal longline), pot, pelagic trawl, and non-pelagic trawl. The estimates provided here do not apply to gillnet, seine, troll, or jig gear"--Introduction. doi:10.7289/V5/TM-F/AKR-13 (http://doi.org/10.7289/V5/TM-F/AKR-13)]

Seabird Bycatch significantly adds to the knowledge base of seabird mortality in commercial fisheries, and emphasizes the importance of comprehensive solutions. The product of a 1999 symposium held by the Pacific Seabird Group, Seabird Bycatch is a response to escalating bycatch, a global conservation and fisheries management issue.