Overfishing

LATEST TODAY'S CATCH

Be a Picky Eater

Apr 22, 2013 - 9:43AMWhen it comes to many of our once-favorite seafoods, there aren't always plenty more fish in the sea. In fact, some studies estimate that up to 90 percent of large predatory fish (those that eat other animals—and usually end up...
Jan 3, 2013 - 10:28AM
Buyers examine tuna lining the floor of Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo, Japan...
Sep 28, 2012 - 12:12PM
A longshoreman stands in front of a large pile of oyster shells on...

SPOTLIGHT

Really Small Fry: Shifting Baselines in Marine Fish Stocks

A public service announcement uses a dramatic example to emphasize that ocean fish aren’t as big as they used to be. Find...
Really Small Fry  Shifting Baselines in Marine Fish Stocks
Sep 28 2012 - 12:12pm
A longshoreman stands in front of a large pile of oyster shells on waterfront pier in Atlantic City in 1910. Back then, oysters were incredibly abundant. In the late 1800s, fishermen pulled in 10 million bushels of oysters each year but, by the mid-1900s, the catch had dropped to 1 or 2 million...
Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am
By-catch, illegal fishing, sport fishing, loss of prey and habitat and shark nets are threatening Great White Shark (Carcharodon carcharias) populations globally. More about the great white shark can be found in our Great White Shark featured story.
school of bluefin tuna
Jul 8 2010 - 6:57pm
What is it like to be eyeball to eyeball with a fish the size of a Volkswagen? In this episode of the Podcast of Life, learn how a tuna fisherman and a biologist are teaming up to tag bluefin tuna, and how those tags are revealing surprises that might help save tuna from their own popularity in...
Apr 22 2013 - 9:43am
When it comes to many of our once-favorite seafoods, there aren't always plenty more fish in the sea. In fact, some studies estimate that up to 90 percent of large predatory fish (those that eat other animals—and usually end up on our dinner plates) have disappeared since humans began heavy fishing.
Feb 2 2010 - 11:10am
This photo of a freshly cut dorsal fin from a scalloped hammerhead shark (Sphyrna lewini), was taken in 2006 on a long-lined fishing boat in Cocos Island, 300 miles off the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. Cocos was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site and is the home to one of the world's richest...
Jul 27 2011 - 3:44pm
Orange roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus) is a deep ocean fish that grows and matures at a sluggish rate compared to most shallow water fish. They don't reproduce until they are at least 20 years old and can reportedly live to well past 100 years. In the last few decades fisherman have expanded their...
Building Good Mussels
Jan 14 2011 - 12:35pm
A new wave of farming has come to the ocean. It’s called aquaculture. And it’s a way to grow and harvest mussels and other healthy, tasty types of seafood. Explore other videos that capture the beauty and mystery of the ocean realm at NOAA Ocean Today
Jan 3 2013 - 10:28am
Buyers examine tuna lining the floor of Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo, Japan. Ounce per ounce, tuna is one of the most valuable varieties of seafood. In 2012, a single 593lb bluefin tuna sold for $736,000 in a Japanese market. Not surprisingly, populations of bluefin tunas have declined to very...
May 21 2010 - 12:42pm
View the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch National Guide.
Protecting Sharks  How Nets Hurt
Jan 4 2010 - 5:20pm
Tom Peschak, a photojournalist with the Save Our Seas Foundation, describes the devastating effects shark nets have on ocean life along the South African coastline. The nets were installed to protect swimmers, but the video reveals the shark nets’ damage to fish, whales, turtles and dolphins as...
Jan 26 2010 - 11:44am
This offshore cage is stocked with 70,000 Pacific threadfin (Polydactylus sexfilis), or moi. Aquaculture can provide a sustainable way to satisfy the demand for this Hawaiian delicacy, once reserved for royalty. More about sustainable seafood can be found in our Sustainable Seafood featured story.
Nov 18 2010 - 6:07pm
Alaskan king crab fisheries are on the rebound after years of unsustainable exploitation. New regulations mean that immediately after a haul is brought on board, the crabs are sorted and all females and under-sized crabs are released.
Dec 21 2010 - 1:31am
A beautiful cut of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), a popular species among seafood lovers that is in severe decline. Check out our guest blog post by Oceana's Emily Fisher on the explosion of salmon farming in Chile, and learn more about making smart seafood choices in our Sustainable Seafood...
Jul 5 2011 - 2:33pm
In the dark, cold waters 600 meters (nearly 2000 feet) below the ocean's surface, things happen slowly. Orange roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus), deep ocean fish that were once known as "slimeheads" because of the mucous-producing canals on their heads, grow and mature at a sluggish rate compared to...
Nov 18 2010 - 3:49pm
Worldwide, fisheries touch our lives in countless ways. If well maintained, they can feed millions of people, generate jobs and income, help maintain long-standing community and cultural traditions, and provide a range of products from medicines to clothing. World Fisheries Day, observed annually...
100 000 000 to 000 000 001  Rethink the Shark
Dec 18 2009 - 3:19pm
Who should fear whom? Less than ten humans are killed by shark attacks. Yet millions of sharks are killed each year by humans. More about the great white shark can be found in our Great White Shark featured story.