Successful fisher-driven reduction of megafauna bycatch in a tuna gillnet fishery

Abstract Bycatch in gillnet fisheries is a major source of marine megafauna mortality but effective mitigation options remain limited, especially in low-income countries. Solutions developed for industrial fleets are often too costly or impractical for these fisheries, and regulatory measures demand substantial monitoring and enforcement capacity. Collaborative solutions that harness fisher innovations remain underexplored. Controlling for factors affecting bycatch risk, we used Generalized Additive Models to quantify the performance of 13 tuna gillnet captains participating in a fisher engagement program in Pakistan from 2012–2016. Gillnets are widely viewed as simple, unselective gears, but there was significant variability among individual captains’ dolphin and sea turtle bycatch rates as the group improved remarkably over time, coinciding with iterative changes in fishing practices and accumulated fisher experience. These results highlight the need for fisher-led bycatch interventions that acknowledge individual variation and actively leverage fishers’ capacity to adapt their practices to fish more selectively.