The authors interviewed 779 fishers to assess the bycatch of Humboldt penguins (Spheniscus humboldti) in small-scale surface and bottom gillnet and purse-seine fisheries in Peru and Chile. Results estimated 4,067 penguins were caught as bycatch in 2023 alone, with the highest rates associated with the following: gillnets, location of larger penguin colonies, larger mesh sizes, and certain target species (i.e. corvina drum (Seriolella violacea) and Peruvian grunt (Anisotremus scapularis)). Bycatch was reported in both gear types, but fisher responses as to the state and fate of caught penguins was scant and variable.
Results showed an estimated total of 4067 (±889 s.d.) penguins
caught in 2023, with the highest bycatch associated with gillnets. Ports such as Tambo de Mora and
San José in Peru and Coquimbo and San Antonio in Chile reported the most significant interactions.
Spatial mapping demonstrated that areas with the most common bycatch events coincide with
locations of larger penguin colonies. Multiple correspondence analysis revealed that larger mesh
sizes (3–5 in (7.6 - 12.7 cm)) and certain target species, such as corvina drum (Seriolella violacea)
and Peruvian grunt (Anisotremus scapularis), were strongly associated with reported bycatch event