Albatross gets royal backing
Wednesday, 08 Nov 2006 10:08
100,000 albatrosses are killed each year inadvertently
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Prince Charles has called for more steps to be taken to ensure the survival of the albatross.
It is estimated that 100,000 of the birds, which have traditionally been seen as a good luck symbol for sailors, are inadvertently killed each year by long-line fishing boats, particularly from those in the southern ocean which catch fish such as tuna, toothfish and swordfish.
Commenting on the species' potential extinction, Prince Charles said: "Think of the way in which we treat our world, and the way we treat our oceans, and the way we exploit the fish stocks in particular…It would be such an appalling commentary on the way we treat the world."
His comments came ahead of the Race to Save the Albatross, a programme produced by Friends of the TVE (Television Trust for the Environment) and the RSPB in which His Royal Highness took part.
The programme highlights the problems facing the birds, particularly piracy, as illegal, unregulated vessels are thought to be responsible for at least a quarter of the albatrosses killed annually.
Since 2005 officers from the Albatross Task Force have been working with fishermen to encourage them to use methods that will reduce the number of birds inadvertently caught.
But Prince Charles argued that there is still more work to be done to ensure these methods are used.
"These mitigation measures have been shown to reduce the damage to albatrosses to almost zero… the challenge is to get the message across that these mitigation measures should be used at all times in all these fishing areas," he said.
Race to Save the Albatross will be broadcast across BBC World from November 11th - 13th 2006.