• bycatch reducer devices
• Caretta caretta
• conservation
• fishing gear
• Mediterranean sea

One of the greatest threats to sea turtle survival and conservation in marine habitats is represented by incidental captures (bycatch) due to fishing activities. Among them, bottom trawlers are considered one of the most impacting gears for sea turtle populations. Turtles caught in trawl nets may die because of drowning, as a result of forced apnoea, and/or gas embolism. Therefore, reducing the time a turtle is retained in the trawl is essential to reduce both direct and delayed mortality. To this aim, devices that allow bycaught turtles to escape from the net known as Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) were designed decades ago. TEDs are grids inserted inside the fishing net that divert large objects or animals to an opening in the net that acts as an exit. They have been adopted in many fisheries of the world, especially in shrimp fisheries, but not yet in the Mediterranean where trawlers target multiple species of relatively large size, reason why traditional TEDs have been dismissed because of their effect on reducing commercial catches. Given the key role fishermen play in sea turtle conservation and considering their reticence to change the gear traditionally used, it is crucial to determine the optimal gear configuration that can benefit both commercial income and turtle conservation. The LIFE MEDTURTLE project (co-funded by the LIFE instrument of the EU) encompasses collective actions for improving the conservation status of the EU sea turtle populations in the Mediterranean context. One of these actions is to evaluate the efficiency of a recent TED prototype. We tested TEDs on 2 trawlers in the Gulf of Manfredonia, Southern Adriatic sea. In this area, an important neritic foraging area for Mediterranean loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta), bottom trawlers are the most used gear and a high number of turtles are incidentally captured by them every year. Data were collected through onboard observation between November 2021 and March 2022, comparing the fishing performances of trawlers with top-opening flexible TED and non-modified gears (case control study). In each haul, number of bycaught turtles, and weight of commercial catch and discard (species that have no commercial value and undersized or damaged individuals) were assessed. Nature and size of the natural and anthropogenic debris was evaluated through pictures. Preliminary results on 99 hauls in total performed on two different trawlers equipped with top-opening flexible TEDs showed that in multispecies fisheries the flexible TED is efficient in excluding sea turtles from the net while keeping the commercial catch unchanged. This seems promising regarding the potential use of this type of TED, but they also highlight how raising awareness and involving fishermen is crucial for effective conservation actions. When designing and implementing these actions, it becomes essential to consider their potential effect on economic activities to ensure its widespread and effective application.