I'm sitting in the port of Coquimbo in Chile, just about to set off for a month aboard a longline vessel. The fishing crew will be looking for swordfish on this trip.
We've spent some time on trip preparations. We are going to try using time depth recorders. These small devices, no larger than an AA battery, will measure how fast the longline sinks. This is so important as hooks need to get out of the way of albatrosses looking for some fast food as the line gets set.
I'm also going to be recording how many seabirds I see around the vessel and monitor how the birds react around the fishing gear of this fishery.
We expect to steam toward the Islands of Juan Fernandez where the fishing grounds are located, probably a couple of days steaming from the port. The crew of the vessel seem very enthused and eager to help out, especially the captain, Mario.
Over the past couple of days I have also been checking the ship's bird-scaring line. They have been using it for some time now and one of my tasks is to assess how well it does its job. The material may be too heavy, which causes the line to stay low over the hooks. This doesn't prevent seabird deaths as well as a better designed line so I will be looking at improving the set-up during the trip.
An important aspect is the economic side of mitigation measures. On small vessels with few crew members, the time it takes to deploy and retrieve bird-scaring lines is time away from fishing duties. Therefore I will also be investigating the economics of mitigation use.
Well, I'd better set sail now. I'll let you know how I get on.