The Scottish Government needs to take “vital action” to protect vulnerable seabirds from being caught and killed by fishing gear, a watchdog has said.

The Bycatch Mitigation Initiative, jointly published this week by the UK and devolved governments, outlines the damaging impact of bycatch on marine wildlife – including seabirds – in UK waters.

However, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) has said that it “fails to provide the detail of commitment and action needed” to solve what it considers one of the biggest dangers to seabird lives.

Seabirds have suffered catastrophic declines across Scotland in recent decades and they continue to face an uncertain future.

A 2021 report by NatureScot highlighted that the number of breeding pairs in Scotland has fallen dramatically by 49% since the 1980s.

Concerns have been further exacerbated by the impact of the recent outbreak of avian influenza, dubbed the worst in two decades by experts

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