Current work in wildlife, rivers, public lands, and climate

Monday, June 20, 2016
Endangered Species Act Protection Sought for Pacific Bluefin Tuna

Overfishing Continues As Population Reaches Near Historic Low
Contact: Taylor Jones, (720) 443-2615, tjones@wildearthguardians.org

Additional Contact:
Catherine Kilduff, Centerfor Biological Diversity, (202) 780-8862, ckilduff@biologicaldiversity.org

SAN FRANCISCO— Pacificbluefin tuna have reached dangerously low population levels, so a coalition of individualsand groups today petitioned the National Marine Fisheries Service to protect thespecies under the Endangered Species Act. The Pacific bluefin tuna populationhas declined more than 97 percent since fishing began, largely becausecountries have failed to reduce fishing enough to protect the iconic species, aluxury item on sushi menus.

“Without help,we may see the last Pacific bluefin tuna sold off and lost to extinction,” saidCatherine Kilduff of the Center for Biological Diversity. “New tagging researchhas shed light on the mysteries of where majestic bluefin tuna reproduce andmigrate, so we can help save this important species. Protecting this incrediblefish under the Endangered Species Act is the last hope, because fisheriesmanagement has failed to keep them off the path toward extinction.”

Petitioners requesting that the Fisheries Service listPacific bluefin tuna as endangered include the Center for Biological Diversity,The Ocean Foundation, Earthjustice, Center for Food Safety, Defenders ofWildlife, Greenpeace, Mission Blue, Recirculating Farms Coalition, The SafinaCenter, SandyHook SeaLife Foundation, Sierra Club, Turtle Island RestorationNetwork and WildEarth Guardians, as well as sustainable-seafood purveyor JimChambers.

“This beautiful, high-performance migratory predator iscritical to ecosystem balance in the ocean,” said Mark Spalding, president ofThe Ocean Foundation. “Unfortunately, these fish have no place to hide frommankind’s high-tech, long-distance, big-net fishing fleets. It is not a fairfight, and so the Pacific bluefin tuna is losing.”

Intensifying the concern surrounding the tuna’s drasticpopulation drop to less than 3 percent of the unfished population, almost allPacific bluefin tuna harvested today are caught before reproducing, leaving fewto mature and propagate the species. In 2014 the Pacific Bluefin tunapopulation produced the second-lowest number of young fish seen since 1952. Justa few adult age classes of Pacific bluefin tuna exist, and these will soondisappear due to old age. Without young fish to mature into the spawning stockto replace the aging adults, the future is grim for Pacific bluefin unlessimmediate steps are taken to halt this decline.

“Feeding the insatiable global sushi market has causedPacific bluefin tuna to decline by 97 percent,” said Phil Kline, senior oceanscampaigner at Greenpeace. “With the Pacific bluefin now facing extinction notonly is an endangered listing warranted, it’s long overdue. The tuna need allthe protection we can give them.”

Starting Monday, June 27 in La Jolla, Calif., countries willnegotiate future catch reductions for Pacific bluefin tuna at the meeting oftheInter-American Tropical Tuna Commission. All signs point to the Commissionopting to maintain the status quo, which is insufficient to end overfishing,let alone promote a recovery to healthy levels.

“Consider this: Bluefin tuna takes up to a decade to matureand reproduce, but many are caught and sold as juveniles, compromising therepopulation and viability of the species. In the last 50 years, technologicalacumen has enabled us to kill over 90 percent of tuna and other species,” saidDr. Sylvia Earle, National Geographic explorer-in-residence and founder of Mission Blue. “When onespecies is fished out, we move on to the next, which is not good for the ocean andnot good for us.”

“Nearly a century of indiscriminate and unlimited fishingfor Pacific bluefin tuna has not only brought the tuna itself to the brink ofextinction, but has also resulted in innumerable marine mammals, sea turtles andsharks being caught and killed by tuna fishing gear,” said Jane Davenport,senior staff attorney at Defenders of Wildlife.

“The Pacific bluefin tuna is a majestic fish, warm-blooded,often six feet long, and one of the largest, fastest and most beautiful of allthe world’s fishes. It is also endangered,” said Doug Fetterly of the SierraClub. “Given the dire situation with a population drop of 97 percent, ongoingoverfishing, and increasing negative impacts from climate change, the SierraClub Marine Action Team calls for protection of this vital species by listingit as endangered. Without thisprotection, the Pacific bluefin tuna will continue its downward spiral towardextinction.”

“Pacific bluefin may well be the needlessly endangered fishin the world,” said Carl Safina, founding president of The Safina Center. “Theirprofligate and unmanaged destruction is a crime against nature. Eveneconomically, it’s stupid.”

“The near extinction of the Pacific bluefin is yet anotherexample of our failure to grow — or in this case, catch — our food in asustainable manner,” said Adam Keats, a senior attorney at the Center for FoodSafety. “We must change our ways if we are to survive. Hopefully it is not toolate for the bluefin.”

“Insatiable human appetites are emptying our oceans,” saidTaylor Jones, endangered species advocate at WildEarth Guardians. “We must curbour taste for sushi and take action to save incredible wildlife like thebluefin tuna from extinction.”

“Listing the Pacific Bluefin tuna as an endangered specieswill allow countless juvenile fish to reach maturity, thereby helping torebuild this depleted fishery. The bigger challenge is, of course, to controlunregulated and illegal fishing in international waters, an issue that must beaddressed worldwide,” said Mary M. Hamilton of SandyHook SeaLife Foundation.

“Status-seeking sushi eaters are eating the majestic bluefintuna into extinction and we have to stop now, before it’s too late,” said ToddSteiner, biologist and executive director of Turtle Island Restoration Network.“Placing the Pacific bluefin on the Endangered Species list is the first stepto end the slaughter and put this amazing species on the road to recovery.”

“Unrestrained commercial overfishing condoned by theinternational bodies has already allowed Pacific bluefin tuna to fall to just2.6 percent of its unfished level,” said Jim Chambers, owner of Prime Seafood. “Bluefinare the most highly evolved of all fishes and because of their great power andstamina are deservedly considered a supreme challenge in big game fishing. Wesimply need to save the world’s most valuable fish before it’s too late.”