The seafood industry says a big increase in the number of dolphins caught in commercial nets in the Bay of Plenty last year is concerning, and it's doing a lot to avoid by-catch.
Figures obtained by conservation group Forest and Bird suggest more than 20 times the annual average were caught last year.
Kevin Hackwell of Forest and Bird told 1 NEWS it's very alarming that 44 of the protected common dolphins were caught, and half of them died at the time.
The Ministry for Primary Industries says on average, only one or two dolphins were caught each year in the Bay of Plenty in the last seven years.
Seafood New Zealand chief executive Tim Pankhurst said the increase appears to be an aberration.
"It could be that dolphin numbers have increased in the bay. It could be a number of circumstances that have come together," he said.
He said the numbers relate to three incidents, and it is concerning.
"There's a lot of measures being adopted to avoid by-catch - everything from setting long lines at night, to weighting them quickly, to avoiding species where we can."
MPI says events like this are rare and fishermen are getting better at reporting incidents.
The Ministry also said it's committed to rolling out digital monitoring on all commercial fishing vessels to provide accurate and verified information.
The by-catch also included endangered turtles, fur seals and hundreds of seabirds, all caught in the Bay of Plenty.
Forest and Bird says the industry should be doing more to protect all marine animals.
"And also a commitment from the industry to really do best practice to really go for that zero by-catch goal is what the industry should be doing," Mr Hackwell said.
SHARE ME