Endangered short-tailed albatross dies after being caught on commercial fish hook off Alaska

Endangered bird dies on longline fishing hook

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — An endangered bird once thought to be extinct has died after being caught on a longline commercial fishing hook in Alaska.

The American Bird Conservancy says the short-tailed albatross was killed in the Bering Sea. Federal officials say the death of the 7½-year-old bird is the first such by a U.S. commercial fishing vessel since 1998.

The short-tailed albatross was once thought to be extinct but now numbers a few thousand. The dead animal had a metal leg band identifying it was from Torishima Island in Japan, where the majority of short-tailed albatross breed.

A federal program has helped greatly reduce the number of albatross deaths caused by commercial fishing. The problem is known as by-catch, or the unintended capture of a non-targeted species.