Over 40 Species Nearing Extinction

Posted by Mike Tirone on April 26, 2011

The results of a recent study conducted by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) indicates more than 40 fish species in the Mediterranean could vanish in the next few years.

The report points to overfishing, citing nearly half the species of sharks and rays and 12 species of bony fish are teetering on the edge of extinction.

Pollution and loss of habitat have played significant roles in the threat to these popular species...

Adding to a critical situation is the fact that the industrial fishing depth increases annually, allowing commercial fishermen to venture deeper into the sea each year.

Swiss-based IUCN —an environmental network of 1,000 groups of 160 nations — specifically identified commercial catches of bluefin tuna, sea bass, hake, and dusky grouper as the most threatened species.

Global marine species assessment coordinator Kent Carpenter says the drop in reproductive capacity of giant fish is due to four decades of intensive overfishing.

“The Mediterranean and eastern Atlantic population of the Atlantic bluefin tuna is of particular concern,” Carpenter explains.

Fishing in the Mediterranean is regulated by U.N. Treaties, the European Union, and separate laws among the 21 nations that border the sea. And last November, they tip-toed into action...

The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas has voted to cut the fishing quota of bluefin in the eastern Mediterranean and Atlantic from 13,500 to 12,900 metric tons annually — a mere 4% reduction.

While a four percent reduction is no doubt.....

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