The circular hook is a new type of hook that has been proposed recently as a effective method to reduce the incidental capture of marine turtles, without affecting the rate of fish capture.  The particular design of these hooks, prevents in many cases the hook from being swallowed by the turtle. In theory, the majority of hooks are caught in the turtle’s mouth.  When the turtles are captured, the fishermen cut the fishing line at the turtle’s mouth and then release the turtle. What happens from this point onwards to the turtle, and any injuries produced by the hook that could result in death are unknown at the present time.

The fundamental objective of Project G was to improve the protocols for the handling and extraction of hooks on board fishing vessels, the clinical study of the injuries and mortality rate of the circular hook produced in turtles in the short and medium term, as compared with the results of previous studies by Foundation CRAM on the “J” hooks (type “parrot beak”). For this study, 11 turtles captured by this technique were kept for one year in the Foundation’s Centre of Recuperation.

From the start of the project, the 11 case-studies were kept in conditions as similar as possible to natural conditions, under strict and continuous veterinary supervision. Periodic analytical studies and X-rays were performed to determine the extent of the injuries. Thanks to this, the turtles were monitored at all times.  After this period of time, all turtles that didn’t present with injuries that could be life-threatening in their natural habitat, were released after having the hook was extracted.

This project was developed thanks to the collaboration of the Alnitak association and Echevarne Laboratories and was co-financed by:

Ministerio de Medio Ambiente, Medio Rural y Marino:

Dirección General para la Biodiversidad
Dirección General de Recursos Pesqueros y Acuicultura

Generalitat de Cataluña:

Departament de Medi Ambient i Habitatge
Departament d’Agricultura, Alimentació i Acció Rural

Watch the final report in PDF:

Informe Proyecto G (IN SPANISH) [Size 6,2 Mb]