First records from the Mediterranean of a Sooty Shearwater Ardenna grisea caught accidentally by a surface longline

Abstract

Bycatches of seabirds in Mediterranean fisheries threaten not only the most abundant species but also species that are only occasional. Here, we provide the first two records of accidental catches of Sooty Shearwater Ardenna grisea on a surface longline in the Mediterranean. The shearwaters were caught in April 2015 (dead) and December 2017 (alive) south off Tarragona, Spain, over the continental shelf. The dead specimen was a young male, as indicated by the testes and bursa of Fabricius examined during necropsy. The live bird could not be aged, although its biometry suggests that it too was a male. Interactions between Sooty Shearwaters and Mediterranean longline fisheries are exceptional events that, a priori, probably only have a low global impact on the conservation of this species. However, could be of relevance given that this species is in decline and is catalogued as Near Threatened by the IUCN.