Incidental bycatch mortality and fishing restrictions: impacts on juvenile survival in the Endangered Saimaa ringed seal Pusa hispida saimensis

Abstract

Fisheries incidental bycatch poses a significant threat to many marine mammal populations, especially with the use of passive gear, such as gillnets, which have contributed to the population declines of several species Additionally, the Endangered (Sipil 2016) land-locked Saimaa ringed seal Pusa hispida saimensis is threatened by various human-induced risk factors, among which incidental by catch, together with climate change, may be regarded as the most critical sources of current mortality (