10:30 on a Monday morning. Just an average morning with a beautiful sunrise, in the middle of the Tasman Sea. We're more than a thousand metres above the Challenger Plateau, and hundreds of miles west of New Zealand. This morning, however, instead of just bottom trawlers ravaging the seamounts below, the Rainbow Warrior and its mini-fleet of inflatables are holding vigil.
I'm sitting in the Waka Nui, bobbing up and down on steely blue waves. Hundreds of seabirds - various albatross, mollywalks, petrels and the odd shearwater are wheeling around our heads, impatiently waiting for the New Zealand bottom trawler Westbay to haul its nets. The Avon patrols next us, ready to capturing the evidence - photographs and video.
Wheels turn, cables groan - the Westbay starts the long haul from the ocean floor. It takes about forty minutes to haul up several kilometres of cable. The birds know this - their circling gets tighter - some seem to be practicing their landing techniques - scooting down for a quick skid on the waves before flapping away again.
Eventually, the two huge rusting trawl doors are pulled from the water. There's all kinds of clanging as they're secured to the stern of the Westbay. Once the crew of the bottom trawler change over the cables to the main winch, the hauling starts again.
The albatross are getting more excited. Until we came out here on the Rainbow Warrior last year, I'd entertained the idea of albatross as solitary animals, feeding on whatever ocean life comes to the surface. But these birds aren't dumb - they know that the presence of a trawler means that soon the sea will be covered in dead marine animals - apparently 'unwanted' by humans.
The net breaks the surface - supported by yellow buoys. The 'cod end' - the collection area in the bottom of the net - bulges with deep sea life, dragged up from the bottom of the ocean. I can see the green eyes of bottom-dwelling sharks bulging from grey heads squeezed out through mesh. There are sea stars, pressed against the net, like dead flies on a windshield. I can't see much orange roughy in there - the target species the bottom trawlers are after. The albatross are on the water now, squabbling noisily with each other.
Logi steers the boat in closer - Abri and I ready ourselves with landing nets, looking for any bykill falling from the net. All of these creatures are already dead - their insides mashed from a change in more than 100 atmosphere of pressure. Think about it - scuba divers can get the 'bends' if they ascend too rapidly from depths of 40 metres (5 times atmospheric pressure). These fish and invertebrates ascend through more than 20 times that - arriving at the surface with exploding eyes, and swim bladders pushed out through mouths, like little pink and orange balloons.
As we get closer, the force of compressed flesh pushes a few mutilated rattails through the net. They float towards us, and reach out with the nets - but the albatross are professionals. They land, grab, wolf down the fish, and take off - all in lightning fast movement.
The Westbay accelerates and steams off into the distance - along with its entourage of hungry birds.
- Dave
Comments
Hey Badger. Another level of annoyance is the fact that, like most people i've dealt with, they all believe that like the Lion King, all animals have feelings, and walk and talk and act like humans.Another classic is watching " Babe" or " Finding Nemo" Since uncle walt bestowed human characteristics to animals, now how many humans do you see eating mice?
If you have any comments i'd appreciate....
whos turn next.
Posted by: Marlin Spike at June 29, 2005 12:24 AM
As a vegetarian i felt proud about my self, in the mean time i was dissapointed about our species.
exploded eyes... exploded internal organs...are these the things we eat? im asking this from you..from the people who reads this...if you can stop eating animal flesh you ultimatly contribute to the down fall of this evil industry...Yes! then you may say how could my share create such a difference? my friend, you are a fool then, if you could not shot these buggers.. hit them with at least with a grain of sand, if all of us do the same we would berry them in sand... any way my private intention of being a vegitarian go beyond the scope of this...
I can't beleive that is what really happens i never even knew about the differetn pressure levels that there is in water thank ou for bringing this to my attention i wish you all the best to get them and deal to them what they deserve... No not violence but redundancy or something similar..
Posted by: Jessie at June 7, 2005 07:15 PM
I didn't get it until now. I just read the posts from the past 3 days, saw the pictures, and I think I'm going to be sick. Do these bottom trawlers not understand that in the long run they are harming their livelyhood? They're systematically killing the food chain. It reminds me of clear-cuttings in the forests. Some things just boggle the mind. The thing is, most people (like me) don't even know that this is going on! I promise to spread the word. I'm sort of good at that, big mouth and all :)
I hope you all have smooth sailing for a while. The pictures of the sea were enough to make me want to reach for seasickness pills, and a life jacket... yikes! You all stay safe, and keep up the good work!
Posted by: Janet at June 7, 2005 04:18 PM
Go you good things!!!! Go get the bastards. You guys rock. Thanks for protecting the oceans for the rest of us land-lubbers. Rock on!
Posted by: Nessco at June 7, 2005 01:16 PM
well that was a disturbing way to start a tuesday morning. i feel for you all being out there and actually seeing it for yourselves. thank you for putting in the effort and representing all of us who care. go hard guys and be safe xxx
