Shielding Fish to Protect Whales and Fishers Income

• Published in: Frontiers for Young Minds
• Main Authors: Rabearisoa, Njaratiana, Arnau, Alice, Bodin, Manon, Hanse, Constance, Portalez, Marin, Bach, Pascal
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Frontiers Media SA 2022
• Subjects: toothed whale; toothed whales
• Online Access: https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00779/89071/94627.pdf; https://doi.org/10.3389/frym.2022.692106; https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00779/89071/

Some toothed whale species have gotten used to stealing or damaging fish that have been captured by the fishing equipment of fishers. This stealing is called depredation, and it is a problem for both fishers and toothed whales in all the oceans of the world. Fishers lose their catch and must work harder, and the whales can get injured and forget how to hunt. It is important to develop a solution to prevent toothed whales from stealing fish captured by fishers. Our group of scientists is developing a system that can protect captured fish from being stolen. Basically, our innovation is like Spider-man© throwing a spiderweb over the fish, to hide them from toothed whales! In the near future, we are hopeful that this system will both help the fishers by protecting their catch and help to protect toothed whales.