The French government should ban hunting in parts of its western coast due to fears that dolphins are at “serious risk” of extinction. Dolphins are caught in large nets, where they are suffocated or maimed by fishermen. France has been under pressure for years to prevent a rise in marine animal mortality.
The Pelagos Institute of Oceanography estimates that nearly 1,000 dolphins have died on France’s Atlantic coast this winter as a result of “by-catch while fishing.” France has given the Council of State six months to ban fishing in parts of the Bay of Biscay and better protect common dolphins, bottlenose dolphins and porpoises.
Scientists estimate that about 10,000 dolphins and porpoises are killed annually in that marine area in western France alone, recently up to 18,000 a year. Industrial fishing is cited as the main culprit. While conservationists praised the council’s work, campaigners said they “hope it’s not too late” to save the many animals. Experts also say that dolphins have changed their breeding patterns to give birth more quickly, a known sign of extinction.
Anatomy
Many species are now in an “adverse conservation state,” authorities say, with dolphins common in the area and porpoises at risk of extinction. The controversial fishing methods consist of large French nets scouring the ocean for common fish, indiscriminately taking in an entire group of marine animals. Autopsies in some dolphins showed high levels of mutilation. According to activists, it is customary for fishermen to cut off parts of the bodies of bottlenose dolphins after they get entangled in nets so that they can save their gear.
French authorities have been under pressure for several years to do more to prevent a rise in marine animal mortality, and have come under fire for not taking more drastic action.
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