Join me in signing Greenpeace Aotearoa‘s petition to reinstate the Fishing Related Morality Limit (FRML) of 52 New Zealand sea lions/pakake per year. Click: https://community.greenpeace.org.nz/…/reinstate-the…
Pakake are classified as ‘Endangered’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, and there are a total of only approximately 12,000 individuals in existence. The majority of their population reside in the Subantarctic Islands, where they fled after we eradicated them from mainland Aotearoa, as a result of Sealing and Māori subsistence hunting.
According to the Department of Conservation, in 2022/23, pup births at the Auckland Islands (their primary breeding colony) had decreased by a record 24%!
Not only is the Subantarctic Islands home to many of Aotearoa’s indigenous and endangered wildlife, including a genealogically distinct yellow eyed penguin/hoiho species; it is where the
Southern Squid Trawl Fishery (SQU 6T) operates.
Pakake are under threat by fisheries due to direct impacts such as bycatch, and indirect impacts such as starvation; which is forcing cows to dive to depths of 600 meters for squid, exceeding their calculated aerobic dive limit (cADL) by 60%.
Join me, stand up and speak up for pakake.