Cormorants Swarm Barth Harbor - Fishermen Fume Over Massive Herring Consumption
- Swarms of Cormorants Overrun Barth; Local Fishermen Lodge Complaints
By the way, did you know that cormorants can grow up to a whopping meter in length?
It's quite a spectacle in the small town of Barth, where thousands upon thousands of cormorants grace the harbor. A sight that leaves tourists in awe, these water birds flock and dive in the Baltic Sea, before preening themselves on the rocks.
However, it's a headache for local fishermen. While they must abide by fishing quotas to help fish populations recover, cormorants are decimating herring stocks by the thousands.
Laws on fishing are strict, but cormorants seem to flaunt them
Herring populations in the Baltic Sea aren't recuperating as expected. Fishermen are only permitted to catch herring using passive fishing gear like gillnets and traps in limited quantities, as dictated by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture.
Disgruntled fisherman André Gräler estimates there are around 8,000 to 10,000 cormorants per day. He's pushing for population control measures: "A single day's worth of cormorant feasting can trump the amount I'm allowed to fish all year!" Gräler asserts.
According to Gräler, cormorants can consume a staggering 3 to 4 tons of fish daily. "They're stuffed to the gills—hence why they're still here," he adds. The state association of inland fishermen MV had initially asked for a culling premium for cormorants at the start of 2024.
Cormorants catch twice as much fish from the waters as fishermen
It's been said that cormorants are basically the fishermen's competitors, hoovering up twice as much fish from the sea as the fishermen. The fishermen's association is pushing for cormorant population reduction.
However, animal rights activists are against tough measures against cormorants. According to Nabu, the nature conservation association, declines in fish populations are more due to water pollution than cormorant feasting. Nabu advocates, "embrace the cormorant as a key player in our water ecosystems," as stated on their website in support of the cormorant.
Once near extinction, now thriving
Cormorants are protected throughout the EU. Having once been close to extinction, their numbers have since bounced back. The population of cormorants in the southwestern Baltic Sea, encompassing Denmark, Schleswig-Holstein, and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, boasts approximately 50,000 breeding pairs.
- Plight of the Fishermen
- Baltic Sea
- Cormorants
- Herring
- Animal Rights
- The community policy in Barth, struggling with cormorant populations, is considering vocational training for fishermen to adapt to the changing demand in the industry.
- In a bid to protect herring stocks and alleviate the pressure on local fishermen, a new policy on vocational training in sustainable fishing practices has been proposed for 2024.
- Despite the ongoing dispute over cormorant populations and their impact on local herring ecosystems, some believe that these birds should be considered as part of the natural ecosystems and not targeted for population reduction.
