Nature / Marine litter concern as tangled gannets found dead
A FRESH call has been made to keep the seas and environment tidy after more gannets were spotted over the last few days tangled in marine debris – with two dead.
Ian Nicolson came across two gannets found fastened together when he was out on his boat off Walls on Tuesday morning.
He said one was still alive but the other was “long gone”.
Nicolson managed to cut the alive one free, and although it ultimately swam off it could not fly.
Meanwhile local Green councillor Alex Armitage said seeing two gannets tangled in debris – one of which was dead – at Noss at the weekend was a “shocking visual reminder of the harmful consequences of avoidable human interference with nature”.
He spotted one dead that was hanging from the cliffs by netting, while another was seen flying with twine hanging off its body.
“The gannet colony at Noss is an internationally important wildlife site and it was upsetting to see the harm caused by human activity towards these magnificent birds,” Armitage said.
Reflecting on his experience, Nicolson said he was off fishing on Tuesday and spotted what he thought was a bird with a broken wing in the water.
“There was something else alongside it,” he said.
“Initially I was reluctant to go to close because we keep hens and I thought the gannets were heavily impacted by the avian flu a year or two ago.”
Nicolson then noticed that it was two gannets hooked together by the beak, with one dead.
“I managed to pick them up and get them aboard the boat, and it was just tiny bit of courlene string. It was only a ball about 20 millimetres in diameter.
“They’ve probably both gone for it. They’ve got small teeth inside their bills for holding onto fish, and it was just completely tangled up in that.
“There’s all this debris that floats in the water, and it has quite a big impact on wildlife.”
Meanwhile Armitage said he saw two separate gannets tangled in debris while on a Shetland Seabird Tours trip to the back of Noss at the weekend.
“Gannets build their nests with whatever material they can find, using their guano to cement nest material to the rock,” he said.
“Usually they use organic materials such as seaweed and grass, however they use marine litter as well if they find it.
“We saw two examples of gannets that had become trapped in plastic twine, one bird was flying around with around two metres of rope streaming behind it, the other had fallen off her perch and had died a gruesome death, suspended upside down.”
Armitage said had it been natural material, the bird may have been able to break free.
He added that the bird deaths “pale almost into insignificance” compared with the Avian influenza outbreaks in recent years, or “ecosystem damage caused by global heating”.
“I’d like to recognise the good work that Shetland Fishermen do with the Fishing For Litter campaign, which undoubtedly prevents many more marine animals from suffering a similar fate,” he said.
“An important reminder to all of us of the fragile ecosystems that we all depend on, and the need to protect nature. Dunna chuck bruck.”
Shetland Seabird Tours’ Rebecca Nason said they see gannets taking fishing rope off the sea surface to line their nests regularly and “have often caught tangled gannets on the sea and removed the ropes, and set them free again”.
“Unfortunately some birds get tangled up high on the inaccessible ledges and can’t be reached, leading to a prolonged, agonising death,” she added.
“The fishing industry must clean up their act when it comes to fishing net, line, rope and other discarded material and dispose of it safely.
“Equally we advocate, promote and take part in Da Voar Redd Up annually to help clear the beaches of all kinds of man-made rubbish to remove it from the marine environment.”
The Fishing For Litter scheme encourages fishermen to collect marine litter caught in their nets and dispose of it onshore.
Shetland Fishermen’s Association executive officer Daniel Lawson said “no-one likes to see photographs like this, and so action to tackle marine debris has come a long way in recent years”.
He highlighted how Shetland vessels participate in the Fishing for Litter scheme, with waste logs enforced and bins and skips provided.
“There will always be accidents and weather-related loss of fishing gear, and efforts are made by local vessels wherever possible to retrieve this – underlined by the value of fishing gear,” Lawson said.
“However, unfortunately, there is an international fishing effort around Shetland as well as historical debris, a staunch hobby fishing effort, and other marine industries which use rope etc.
“By working together there can be concrete efforts to tackle marine debris around the isles even more efficiently, but easy finger pointing and blame games are unlikely to inspire the collective action sometimes required.”
The issue of marine litter and the impact on wildlife has regularly cropped up in recent years in Shetland, with this striking image for instance highlighting the topic in 2019.
Become a member of Shetland News
Shetland News is asking its readers to consider paying for membership to get additional perks:
- Removal of third-party ads;
- Bookmark posts to read later;
- Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
- Hide membership messages;
- Comments open for discussion.
If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a member of Shetland News by either making a single payment, or setting up a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.
Already a member? Sign in to hide this message.
