Tuna is a vital part of our diet, both in rich and poor countries alike, and as we increase our consumption of tuna we are having massive impacts on fish stocks.
“Longliners, harpooners, and purse seiners all targeted the giants, driven by the high prices paid in Japan - which consumes 40% of global bluefin landings and where a single bluefin has sold for over $US150,000!”
Tuna are magnificent fish. Weighing up to 700 kg, they travel across oceans and can swim over 40 miles per hour. But this big fish is in big trouble. We are hunting it to extinction as we satisfy the world’s insatiable hunger for fish. Six tuna species are listed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List which identifies the conservation risk of species around the world. Of these the Southern Bluefin Tuna is listed as Critically Endangered. future generations.
There are five key tuna species that are commercially fished: bluefin, albacore, skipjack, bigeye and yellowfin. Only a few years ago these fish stocks were in a healthy state, but now with over-fishing and poaching we are pushing these fish close to extinction. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) says that “Longliners, harpooners, and purse seiners all targeted the giants, driven by the high prices paid in Japan - which consumes 40% of global bluefin landings and where a single bluefin has sold for over $US150,000!” In 1999, Greenpeace recorded how Mediterranean bluefin had declined by 80 percent. In addition there are heaps of by-catch, such as sharks, turtles and dolphins that are netted with the tuna fishing causing massive devastation.
Bluefin Tuna Endangered by Overfishing
We are not learning from our mistakes. Greenpeace says that “advances in technology mean large ships - floating factories - are now able to take as much tuna in 2 days as whole countries can take in a year.” Tuna quotas are recommended by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT) and then the specific tuna catch regulations are made by each country within their own exclusive economic zone. But there is much heated debate about the ICCAT quotas, the failure to protect juvenile fish and the need for sustainable recovery plan to be put in place.
The latest advancements with tuna farms are not helping the problem. The fish farming industry is now catching live bluefin tuna and transferring them to tuna farms, or cages, where they are fattened for the Asian market. WWF says that nearly two-thirds of the entire annual quota for the Mediterranean and Eastern Atlantic were transferred to fish farms. This is having a massive impact on the ecosystems of our oceans.
Greenpeace says that “advances in technology mean large ships - floating factories - are now able to take as much tuna in 2 days as whole countries can take in a year.”
Please learn more about global warming, and the decline of the forests. Teach your children and others about the importance of reducing waste, pollution and greenhouse gases.
Thank you for taking the time to read about Bluefin Tuna.
g, they travel across oceans and can swim over 40 miles per hour. But this big fish is in big trouble. We are hunting it to extinction as we satisfy the world’s insatiable hunger for fish. Six tuna species are listed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List which identifies the conservation risk of species around the world. Of these the Southern Bluefin Tuna is listed as Critically Endangered. future generations.
Support campaigns to stop destructive fishing practices, such as the Greenpeace one.
