Fishtek Marine in the press...

turetle bycatch wwf

Green lights on fishing nets could slash bycatch of sea turtles, says research

The Conversation, 19th March 2024
 

Bycatch in fishing gear is one of the biggest threats to sea turtles. But these creatures are particularly sensitive to green light so they’re less likely to get caught up in fishing nets fitted with green LED lights….

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Ocean Awards 2023 winner: Q&A with Fishtek’s Rob Enever on scallop potting

BOAT International, 24th January 2024
 
In the world of marine conservation, innovation takes centre stage with the emergence of scallop potting, a groundbreaking method with the potential to transform the landscape of scallop harvesting….
 
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Fishtek: Scallop Lights Breakthrough

Fishing News, 15th May 2023
 
The story about ‘scallop discos’ made news way beyond the fishing world in 2022, but behind the healines, much hard work, engineering and science remained to be done…..
 
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2023 Ocean Award Winners!

Blue Marine Foundation & BOAT International, 10th May 2023
 
Fishtek Marine pots innovation award with scallop lights! 
 
 
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New gadget could reduce shark bycatch by 90%

The Guardian, 21st November 2022
 
Trials of the SharkGuard – which emits a pulse to repel sharks and rays from fishing gear – have produced eye-catching results.
 
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‘Scallop Discos’: How some glitzy lights could lead to a low-impact fishery

NPR, 7th September 2022
 
 
 
 
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Innovations keep unintended fish and other animals out of nets

Washington Post, 17th August, 2022
 

Reducing bycatch, or animals caught by accident, is one of the ways to make fishing sustainable.

 

Scientists discover that scallops “love” disco lights

NME, 23rd May 2022
 

The bivalve wonderland appears to get the best of mollusks.

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‘Global first’ breakthrough for a low impact scallop fishery

Fishing Daily, 18th May 2022
 

UK marine scientists discover ‘global first’ breakthrough for a low impact scallop fishery.


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Accidental discovery that scallops love ‘disco’ lights leads to new fishing technique

The Guardian, 18th May 2022
 

Scientists hail breakthrough that could maximise catches while reducing damage caused by fishing.

 

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Fishtek Marine speaks with the BBC World Service

BBC World Service, 29th March 2022 
 

On the southern coast of England, we meet the man who’s designed a hi-frequency gadget which warns dolphins to stay out of fishing nets.

 

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Prize catch – Hookpod invention keeps seabirds safe

Intellectual Property Office, 14th June 2021
 

It’s not every day that a business finds a big gap in the market and creates a solution to a major environmental issue, but that’s exactly what Devon-based brothers Ben and Pete Kibel did.

 

Seabird saving device makes finals of European Inventor Award 2021

The Engineer, 5th May 2021

Around 300,000 seabirds, including endangered species of albatross, die annually as marine fishing bycatch. To mitigate the problem and make commercial fishing more targeted and sustainable, British brothers Ben and Pete Kibel, an engineer and fisheries biologist respectively, developed Hookpod, which is a small, reusable device that encapsulates baited hooks.

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Floating ‘Wall-E’ scarecrow stops seabirds diving into fishing nets 

The Guardian, 5th May 2021

Scarecrows may be outstanding in their field, but now scientists have created an unusual floating version that could help reduce the number of vulnerable seabirds caught by fishing nets.

The device, known as a looming-eyes buoy (LEB), and developed in collaboration with engineers from Fishtek Marine…

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Five great new green innovations – from pop-up rodent tents to tyre dust

The Guardian, 3rd March 2021

A sound idea – One of the biggest threats to cetaceans is accidental bycatch in fishing nets. The La Plata or toninha dolphin (Pontoporia blainvillei), dates back a million years and is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN red list – its closest relative is the Amazonian pink river dolphin. Found in coastal and often shallow waters in Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina, these cetaceans are particularly at risk of becoming entangled in nets.

Unusually, one population of up to 80 of these small dolphins lives in the estuary of Babitonga Bay in south Brazil, where fishing is a key industry. A team of researchers at the Toninhas Project is using photo identification to monitor….

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Green Britain: Survival chances of Harbour porpoises boosted thanks to marine tech firm

Daily Express, 1st April 2021

Engineer Fishtek Marine, whose fishing net technology is helping save the oceans’ wildlife from accidental slaughter, has landed a major export contract helping to protect harbour porpoises in Norway. The deal, worth thousands of pounds, will supply Norwegian cod fisheries with Devon-based Fishtek’s acoustic banana pingers. These prevent the mammals from being unintentionally caught in fishing gear, an issue known as bycatch….

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Research into ‘pingers’ to stop cetacean bycatch shows they are effective

BBC Wildlife Magazine, 6th July 2020

Conservationists are hoping new research into the effectiveness of ‘pingers’ – acoustic devices that deter cetaceans from hunting around fishing nets – will persuade the UK Government to lift its ban on their use in small boats….

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A sound idea: ‘Banana Pinger’ audio device could help reduce porpoise bycatch

Marine Stewardship Council, 15th June 2020

In the UK alone, 14% of harbour porpoise and 23% of common dolphin deaths between 2011 and 2017 were attributed to bycatch (accidental and unwanted catch). Research in 2006 estimated global marine mammal bycatch to number in the hundreds of thousands.

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