Overfishing seems to be a good strategy to
maximize fisher’s profit, but it also has very serious consequences and
irreversible impact on balance of marine life. Due to the increase in fishing
efforts and the use of unsustainable fishing practices, there is an increasing
number of marine species on the list of endangered marine species. In this
section we will see several most endangered marine species and discuss the
possible ways to prevent them from approaching to extinction.
The Yangtze River dolphin, which is also
known as the lipotes vexillifer, used to
live in downstream of the Yangtze River. It is a mammal in the whale family
living in freshwater. Although the rare Yangtze River dolphins are not edible
and they had been protected by the Chinese government for quite a long time, a
large number of these dolphins are still killed by human activities, mainly
overfishing. According to the statistics provided by Chinese Fishery Bureau,
48.8% of the accidental death of the
lipotes vexillifers in the Yangtze River region, from 1973 to 1985, was caused
by the use of fishing hooks and the collision with paddle of ship over the
course of human’s fishing activities. After the inspection on the lipotes
vexillifers conducted by scientists from the U.K., the U.S. and China in 2006,
they sadly announced to the world that lipotes vexillifers have ‘functionally
extinct’, which means that they have lost the ability to reproduce and all of
them are possibly dead. Although the Chinese government has focused on
protecting this species for almost half a century, the extinction of lipotes
vexillifers still cannot be avoided.
Another species which is facing the threat of
extinction right now is blue-fin tuna, which is the biggest fish in the tuna
family. The blue-fin tuna is the most popular choice for customers in Japanese
market since it is delicious and nutritious. It has become one of the major
food supplies in Japan over the past century due to its large size and
nutritional value. However, after a century of unrestricted fishing, the
population of blue-fin tuna has dramatically dropped and this species has
entered the list of endangered marine species. In 1864, Italian fishermen in
Favignana Island caught 14020 blue-fin tuna, with an average weight of 129
kilograms. In contrast, sadly, only about 100 blue-fin tuna were caught in
2009, with an average weight of only 29 kilograms. Nowadays the blue-fin tuna
is incredibly expensive in Japanese market, which leads to seeking of this
species by even more fishers. Therefore, the legislation on fishing blue-fin
tuna becomes urgent in present society.
Works Cited:
http://www.baike.com/wiki/蓝鳍金枪鱼
http://www.baike.com/wiki/白暨豚&prd=button_doc_jinru
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