Sandeel fishing in UK waters could be banned next year under “gamechanging” government plans to protect puffin and kittiwake numbers, the Guardian can reveal.
The sandeel is a small fish that is critical to marine food webs in the UK, and is an important part of many seabird diets. For example, the number of kittiwakes – which are particularly sandeel-dependent – has fallen by half in the UK since the 1960s, with diminishing availability of prey during the breeding season thought to be mainly responsible.
