Overfishing- An Introduction

When writing the article on the Yangtze Finless Porpoise, I briefly touched on the topic of overfishing. Many of you have probably heard about it, and know it is a massive problem threatening our seas and their inhabitants. Overfishing is so destructive, it can kill all life in the ocean, and many of you might be part of it every day. So I read through many articles from international organisations, and they all say pretty much the same things. It's a highly complex topic, with so many things to say and do, so this is just an introduction to the broadest points. It's very interesting (and sad) but when you look into it further you realize there is actually a lot you can do! This is very important, especially for ocean lovers and seafood people.

What is overfishing?

By definition, overfishing is so intense fishing, people catch fish quicker than the stocks can reproduce. Leading to a massive decrease in stocks that can peak in the extinction of a species. Overfishing is closely related to bycatch and Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU). The thing is, when an entire species of fish are wiped out, an ecosystem can collapse and that in return can collapse fisheries. However, billions of people rely on fish as their main source of protein, and if the seas can not provide our demand for fish and collapse, we'd face a food crisis. That is not the case just now though, as it looks like people catch way more than the demand for fish there actually is. That simply is an unnecessary waste of billions of fish lives.

Bycatch

Bycatch is the unwanted animals caught along with the fish that was initially targeted. Often bycatch is sea turtles, other fish species or seals that are caught along in the gigantic nets. Due to the sheer masses of bycatch, many of these species are now endangered. But for the big companies, that is no reason to stop. All they care about is having enough fish for the demand. Only that many provide way too much and so many lives are ended for nothing. Bycatch is a huge threat to marine species, especially as huge quantities are always caught and lots of animals die. If you do not consider how many fishing boats go out to sea every day, the amount of deaths is extremely sad!

IUU

IUU stands for illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing and is also a major factor in overfishing. The problem with IUU is that people just randomly catch fish, often high-value species of which the fishing is illegal, only partly legal etc. and sell it illegally. The problem is that those people are not tracked down in some places due to a lack of traceability and make lots of money with the fish they sell which harms them so much on the way! And because it's unreported and illegal it's unregulated fishing and those people can more or less do what they want.

Impacts

Now the impacts of overfishing are grave. It's not like a species just disappears and things go on as normal. Everything has a consequence and every time a species disappears or extremely declines in numbers a small hole is ripped into the food chain. The result can be that another species dies out which results in another one going extinct...It's a huge chain reaction that can lead to a collapse of an entire ecosystem! But if the marine ecosystems collapse it will definitely have an effect on us, especially on the billions of people relying on fish. Fisheries will obviously collapse because there is nothing to make money with and many, many people would go hungry. It could elapse into a full-size food crisis!

Your Turn!

Because you love the ocean, the animals and plants living there and eating seafood you really want to do something! And there is so much you can do! First of all, know what you eat and where it comes from. There is the MSC-labelled fish that is said to be sustainable. They're a pretty big organisation that checks fisheries and approve them if they're sustainable. The approved fish will have this blue tick on it with this fish of sorts and it says MSC. When you want to eat different kinds of fish, just check if they're endangered and how they were caught if you can. Make sure you don't eat endangered species. And as always, don't eat too much. Doing almost everything in reasonable amounts is the best for you and everything and everyone around you. So eat fish, just not tonnes of it, not super overfished species and sustainably fished seafood and you've done your part. See you on Sunday guys!

Your Greenworld Team💚

Sources:

https://www.globalgoals.org/14-life-below-water
https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/oceans/
https://www.msc.org/en-au/what-you-can-do/eat-sustainable-seafood/sustainable-seafood-guide
https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/overfishing
https://www.edf.org/oceans/overfishing-most-serious-threat-our-oceans
https://www.britannica.com/technology/commercial-fishing
https://www.msc.org/en-au/what-we-are-doing/oceans-at-risk/overfishing
https://www.britannica.com/technology/commercial-fishing
https://www.msc.org/en-au/what-you-can-do/eat-sustainable-seafood/sustainable-seafood-guide

Image:

This image, owned by Gareth Christopher (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.)

Comments

16.08.2020 Animal of the week: Elephant

Hello. On the 12th of August it was International Elephant Day, so we decided that this week's post should be about elephants. Elephants are the largest living land mammals. There are three types of elephant; the African bush elephant; the African forest elephant and the Asian elephant. African elephants have larger ears, whereas Asian elephants have smaller ears. Elephants use their trunks to breath, bring food and drink to their mouths and to grasp objects. Elephants' legs are like pillars. They carry the Elephant's massive weight. African bush elephants weigh 6000kg, Asian elephants weigh 4000kg and African forest elephants weigh 2700kg. Basically, they are very heavy.Elephants eat grasses, small plants, bushes, fruit, twigs, tree bark, and roots. Elephants can live up to 70 years old in the wild. They communicate by sight, touch and smell. Sadly, these wonderful mammals are in danger. African elephants are listed as vulne...

Rachel Carson 1907-1964

Hi everybody, Today I am going to tell you about a really inspirational environmentalist. Her name is Rachel Carson. I hope her story inspires you to be more careful about pesticides. As a girl, Rachel adored writing stories about animals. She got a degree in zoology but had to go home to care for her ageing mother. She wrote a series of radio shows about fish for a living. Rachel's program, called 'Romance Under Waters', was a big hit. Her ways of writing were different to anyone else and no one had made that sound so interesting before. It proved that she was talented in not only science but also writing. She wrote two books called 'The Sea Around Us' and 'The Edge Of The Sea'. When Rachel moved to the countryside, she realized the impact of pesticides. At that time farmers sprayed chemicals on their fields a lot to protect them from animals that may want to eat them. Rachel worked out that they were killing pla...

Palm Oil

Hi everyone, Today we would like to share with you some information about palm oil. With all the focus on climate change and plastic pollution, not many people are acting against the use of palm oil. Workers First of all, the managers promise that the workers will have good money, but when they arrive, their passports are taken from them, therefore, meaning they are trapped. Soon they find out that they aren't paid as well as promised. They have to work long hours with no breaks, maternity leave or sick days. Some people have to spray pesticides with leaking cans and no safety gear, meaning they become ill but are still forced to work. Deforestation Many animals are losing their home because the trees are chopped down to make room for the palm trees. they are now facing extinction. Also, trees helped to slow down climate change, but without them, climate change speeds up. So this is a big problem. Help your planet! Image:...

How much do you know about big cats? - Quiz

Hello, Lions, tigers, jaguars , cheetahs , leopards - all of these amazing big cats derserve their own quiz, but seeing as we only do one quiz a month, we've had to put them all into one! Questions How old do tigers get in the wild? a) 20 years old b) 30 years old c) 40 years old True or False? The only big cats found in the Americas (in the wild) are jaguars. What is a cheetah's top speed? a) 90km/h b) 100km/h c) 110km/h True of False? A lions roar can be heard from 8km away. Leopards have been around for a long time. How old are the oldest leopard fossils ever found? a) 600 000 years old b) 700 000 years old c) 800 000 years old True or False? In Africa, cheetahs are the most endangered big cats. How heavy can jaguars get? a) 80 kg b) 110kg c) 140kg True or False? All females lions in a pride are related. ...

Amazon Rainforest series - part 2: eco system and food chains

Welcome back to our Amazon mini-series! Today, we're going to talk about the eco system and food chains of the Amazon Rainforest. The eco system is very complex. If you read our last Amazon post you will know the great number of species that call the Amazon Rainforest home. The Amazon Rainforest is a very accurate name for it. Massive amounts of rain fall on the forest every year. Most of that rain is blown in from the Atlantic Ocean. The rest comes from evaporation. The rainforest is known to be full of life. It provides one of the last refuges for jaguars , harpy eagles and pink river dolphins . But the rainforest is home to many more animals than that. Everyone has heard of poison dart frogs right? In fact, the Amazon Rainforest contains 1 in 10 of all known animal species on Earth! That's a lot of animals! The Amazon is home to over 1 000 species of birds, from hummingbirds to eagles. Macaws are probably the most well...

How much do you know about marine animals? | quiz

Hi Everyone! Welcome to another monthly quiz! Today we are so excited to share some quiz questions on marine animals. Let us know how you did in the comments! Questions 1) Which of these came first: sharks, dinosaurs or jellyfish? 2) How many electric bulbs could an electric eel light up? 3) True of False: dolphins sleep with only half their brain. 4) True or False: an octopus has purple blood. 5) What is the loudest sound made by a marine animal (and indeed any animal on the planet!)? 6) True or False: oysters are all female. 7) In which animal species do the males and not the females give birth and care for their young? 8) True or False: a shrimp's heart is in its head. 9) True or False: sea sponges have no head, brain, mouth, eyes, feelers, bones, heart, or lungs. 10) How many continents do turtles live in? Answers: 1) Jellyfish! They've been around for more than 650 million years. 2) 10 3) True! They also...

Animals 36-40 in our '50 incredible animals' series

Hi, As you probably noticed, we took a break from this series, mostly due to having just too much to do. But we're back now with the last three posts. 36. The Pinocchio frog The Pinocchio frog can be found in the Foja Mountains in Indonesia. They mainly eat insects, although little is known about them. They are named because the males have a spike on their noses. They were only discovered in 2008, and this was completely by accident! It remained unnamed scientifically until over ten years later when it was given the name " Litoria pinocchio " . There is very little information about them but Wikipedia states that "the male Pinocchio frog inflates its nose when calling, and the nose decreases in size when the frog is calm and quiet," which I think is hilarious and so interesting! 37. Snub-nosed monkey Especially noticeable due to their curious looks, the snub-nosed monkeys can be found in the forests of central China and northern...

The Responsible Traveller by Karen Edwards || a practical guide to reducing your environmental and social impact // BOOK REVIEW

HI Everyone! Our January monthly post was a zero-waste challenge, but as we explained in our 2023 wrap up , this year we will be alternating a monthly challenge with a book review, of course related to the environment. This week, I'm going to share a recommendation for a fantastic book, all about how you can travel more sustainably and responsibly. I absolutely love travelling, but I'm also very aware of the impact it has on the world, and I am very keen to learn more about how I can further reduce my impact. That's why I bought this book around a year ago, and I've really enjoyed reading it and learning from it. This is a practical, small-format guide, sharing both basic information about the climate crisis and the impact of various travel activities, and how you can do your bit. It shares specific journeys that are more environmentally friendly options, for example long distance train journeys such as The Alaskan Railroad with its stunning alpine forests and wide ar...

Ecosia

We all need to do something to save our planet: it is no use just leaving it to Greta Thunberg! She is very inspirational, yes, but she can only do so much. She isn't superhuman! The climate crisis is up to us; up to you. We all have to get stuck in. Research, learn, discover and most importantly: never give up! The world's animals need us. The world's trees need us and a simple way to do this is to switch to Ecosia. Ecosia is a search engine but it plants trees while you search the web. Okay, it doesn't have as many websites as google so you may want to have google as a backup but it plants trees: this is your opportunity to make a simple change. Just google Ecosia and search to plant trees. Make a difference. Image: This image is owned by Binyamin Mellish on pexels.com .

Linking climate change and inequality - 'The Great Carbon Divide'

Hey everyone, Have you heard of 'The great carbon divide‘? It is often referred to as the 'carbon footprint gap' or the 'emissions imbalance‘, and produces frightening numbers. The great carbon divide describes the huge gap between the amount of carbon dioxide the rich versus the poor emit, and these numbers shocked even us. What does this mean? There have been many different studies, and all of them show terrifying results. One study from the Guardian and Oxfam, reports that the richest 1% of the world's population emit more carbon than the poorest 66%. The richest 1% consist of 77 million people, which may seem like a lot at first, but the poorest 66% refers to over 5 billion people! Africa, which is home to 17% of the world's population, only causes 4% of the world's emissions. This top 1% emitted 16% of global CO2 emissions in 2019, that's 5.9 billion tonnes of CO2. Modelling suggests that it would take someone who isn't in the top 1% about 150...

Green World

Search This Blog