Pingers to Mitigate Bycatch: which one to choose?

Three different pinger models were tested in Black Sea to measure the efficiency to mitigate cetaceans bycatch. Results indicate only the PAL Wideband pinger caused a significant reduction in cetaceans’ bycatch (especifically, a reduction of 74%). Most of bycatch victims were Black Sea harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena relicta), an endangered endemic subspecies. Thus, determining effectivenes of this kind of devices could be especially important for conservation plans.

Popov, D., Meshkova, G., Dimitrov, H., & Panayotova, M. (2026). Can pingers mitigate the bycatch of the endangered Black Sea Harbour Porpoise? Nature Conservation, 63, 1-15. https://doi.org/10.3897/natureconservation.63.183768