Long-Awaited Fisheries Bills Advance as Rough Year for Seabirds Comes to a Close
CoastsSeabirds need better fisheries policies to raise their chicks in the face of climate change.

Making the seas safer for birds
From overfishing of prey, to climate change, and pollution, seabirds are threatened at every part of their life cycle. That's why Audubon is working to reverse the seabird crisis by focusing on sustainable fisheries management, marine protected areas, and our Seabird Institute.
Seabirds need better fisheries policies to raise their chicks in the face of climate change.
Federal fishery managers took decisive action to protect Atlantic herring, a fish many seabirds eat.
A new decision by an Atlantic Coast fishing regulator may put coastal birds like Ospreys at risk of not having enough to eat.
We are working to establish marine protected areas at key locations throughout the Western Hemisphere, including in the U.S., Bahamas, and Chile. Marine protected areas are key to providing habitats for seabirds, fish, and other marine life that benefit coastal communities and economies. For example, the new Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, which Audubon and others helped establish through advocacy and education encompasses crucial wintering grounds for Atlantic Puffins that nest in Maine. Its designation as a national monument limits fishing, drilling, and mining within this nearly 5,000-square-mile region. In addition, in the Bahamas, our scientific data was factored into the establishment of the 92,000-acre Joulter Cays Marine Protected Area, which is the wintering home for thousands of shorebirds, including 10% of the Atlantic population of Piping Plovers. Such protections uphold rich habitats that grow commercial fish populations, while providing a refuge for birds and other wildlife. In coalition with our partners, Audubon will advocate for continued and new protections for these marine protected areas.
Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary is one of the only safe havens for Gulf seabirds.
The Ocean-Based Climate Solutions Act will help seabirds and coastal communities persevere in the face of climate change.
The Hog Island instructor, photographer, and journalist shares his experience as a Black birder working with puffins.
The Chinese Crested Tern was written off as extinct decades ago. Since its rediscovery in 2000, scientists have been working to ensure that Asia’s rarest seabird keeps a firm foothold in reality.
In his twenties the ornithologist had an audacious idea: to restore puffins to the Maine coast. Upon his retirement he reflects on how he pulled it off.
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