VIRGINIA– The Chesapeake Bay Foundation is pointing the finger at a corporate reduction fishing operation for what the group calls a "total population collapse" of osprey on Virginia's Eastern Shore.
A May study by the College of William and Mary's Center for Conservation Biology reports a 90% nesting osprey population decline in recent decades.
The U.S. Geological Survey confirmed that data in a letter to the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources.
The Chesapeake Bay Foundation cites prey scarcity as the main factor and alleges Omega Protein's industrial menhaden fishing likely contributed.
The company says it has cooperated with menhaden stock assessments and monitoring for decades, ensuring sustainable harvest practices.
"Constant oversight of our fishing practices and the status of the stock provides assurance that menhaden will be available for generations to come," the company's website says.
Chris Moore, Virginia Executive Director of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, says Omega Protein's lobbying has blocked funding to research the impacts of industrial menhaden fishing. He is urging officials to take a closer look at the problem.
“We don’t have perfect science, but we have enough to acknowledge a problem," Moore said. "It's time for Virginia to act. Virginia must take this challenge head-on and consider opportunities to ensure enough menhaden are in state waters when osprey and other vulnerable predators need menhaden.”
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission could consider further menhaden management measures in hopes of remedying the reported osprey population collapse on Virginia's Eastern Shore.