📋 Tender Overview
The Peruvian Sea Institute Imarpe through the Office of Research in Superior Predators in collaboration with the Marine Ecosystem Research Unit - Sea Bird Groups of the Southern Scientific University UCSUR has been carrying out the project called Integration of an on-board observer program and remote monitoring data to assess interactions between small-scale longline fisheries and Chatham Thalassarche eremita and Northern Buller Thalassarche bulleri platei albatrosses in their wintering grounds against to Peru which is financed by the Agreement for the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels ACAP of which Peru is a member. These types of albatrosses which are the object of study of this project are migratory birds that nest in oceanic islands of New Zealand and that move throughout the entire Pacific Ocean until reaching the oceanic areas of southern Peru migration transpacific. In this sense this initiative is aimed at determining the fine-scale movement patterns in the sea of these species of albatrosses in the Peruvian sea and associating them with oceanographic characteristics to determine the extent of fishing areas for small-scale spinning boats as well as to create maps of the areas of overlap between albatrosses and artisanal spinning fisheries in southern Peru. A first stage of the project which is led by doctors Carlos Zavalaga and Javier Quiones consisted of two departures aboard a spinning boat from the port of Ilo from May 28 to June 3 and from June 30 to June 10. July 2021 between 130 and 160 nautical miles offshore from Arica Caleta Vitor and Punta Camarones in northern Chile an area known as the Outer Triangle of the Peruvian maritime domain on the border with Chile 18 20 S - 19 S and 72 25 W - 73 W. In this initial stage 6 birds were tagged with satellite transmitters one adult Chatham albatross Thalassarche eremita and five adult Northern Buller albatrosses Thalassarche bulleri platei who were later released. Albatrosses were observed to be found in oceanic areas outside the Peruvian-Chilean trench and above the abyssal plain showing a displacement to the north off the La Planchada-Atico area at approximately 16 S. In addition the degree of overlap between the winter distribution of adult Chatham and Northern Buller albatrosses and small-scale spinel fishing areas in southern Peru was examined using GPS Argos transmitters. The data will be incorporated into a small-scale spinning fishing observation program in southern Peru. Companion fauna mainly dominated by trans-Pacific migrants White-chinned Petrel Bullers Albatross Salvinis Albatross and Northern Giant Petrel from oceanic islands of New Zealand were identified in the evaluation area Southern emigrants Petrel Damero and the Antarctic Polar Skua from the Antarctic Peninsula and the extreme south of Chile Albatros Ceja Negra the Chilean Skua and the Masatierra Petrel from Chilean oceanic islands. Galapagos gull from the Galapagos Islands. The second stage of the project will consist of placing GPS on some artisanal spinning boats in the Ilo region which target sharks. It is expected to determine some areas of probable interaction between birds with this fishery. The Imarpe Coastal Laboratory based in Ilo participates in coordination with the artisanal spinning fleet in the area.
