Patagonian toothfish
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| Dissostichus eleginoides Smitt, 1898 |
The Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides) is a fish found in the cold temperate waters (from 45 to 3850 m depth) of the Southern Atlantic, Southern Pacific, Indian, and Southern Oceans on seamounts and continental shelves around most sub-Antarctic islands. A commercial fishery exists for Patagonian toothfish; the meat is sold under the trade names Chilean sea bass in the USA, merluza negra in Chile, Argentina and Uruguay where it is relatively cheap, and mero in Japan, where it is sold at high prices. A close relative, the Antarctic toothfish, Dissostichus mawsoni, is found farther south, around the edges of the Antarctic shelf.
The average weight of a commercially caught toothfish is 9–10 kilograms (20 pounds) with large adults occasionally exceeding 200 kilograms (440 pounds). They are thought to live to fifty years, reaching a length of 2.3 metres (8 feet).
Patagonian toothfish feed largely on squid, fish and prawns and, in turn, constitute a large part of the diets of sperm whales, Southern Elephant Seals and colossal squid.
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[edit] Legal fishing
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issues compliance numbers to vessels that legally catch Patagonian toothfish. [1]
The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) supervises legal Patagonian toothfish harvesting. [2]
[edit] Illegal fishing
According to Seafood Watch, the Chilean sea bass is currently on the list of fish that American consumers who are sustainability-minded should avoid.
The illegal capture and sale of the Patagonian toothfish has led to several arrests and fines. Illegal overfishing threatens the species in some areas, as the fish is slow-growing, reaching maturity between ten and twelve years of age. The longline fishery has also been criticized for drowning thousands of seabirds, including albatrosses.
In the last few years, the management of several fisheries has improved with increased patrolling for illegal vessels and stringent regulations for legal operators. Although overfishing and illegal 'pirate fishing' are still problems in places, the Marine Stewardship Council has certified the fishery in South Georgia for sustainable management. South Georgia has the largest toothfish fishery, with a TAC (Total Allowable Catch) of around 3000 tonnes per year, taken by approximately ten vessels.
Illegal catches may be up to five times the legal catch limit. As a direct result some researchers have predicted a total collapse of the fishery within two to five years. Called the white gold of the Southern Ocean, illegal toothfish catches are unloaded at so-called "pirate ports" in countries such as Namibia and Mauritius. The fish are then sold on the black market, a single sashimi-grade specimen fetching as much as USD $1,000.[citation needed]
The Patagonian toothfish lives in deep waters (from 300 to 3,500 metres) on seamounts and continental shelves around most sub-Antarctic islands, such as the exclusive economic zone of the French Southern Territories (Kerguelen Islands) and around South Africa's Prince Edward Islands, and Australia's Heard Island and McDonald Islands. In the past, France sold some fishing rights to Japanese and other foreign fisheries; because of overfishing, now fishing is reserved for fisheries from Réunion Island. Because of poaching, the French Navy patrols the zone and has made numerous arrests and seizures. Australian Customs vessels have pursued illegal toothfishing ships up to 6100 kilometres at times. [3]
Illegal fishing for toothfish in the Southern Ocean is hazardous not only for the fish themselves, but for other wildlife in and around the waters. According to The Antarctica Project, "It is common practice in the illegal fishery to dynamite the [Sperm and Killer] whales when they are discovered in the area where the fishing takes place"[1][2] and "…hundreds of thousands of endangered albatrosses and petrels dive for the [fish] bait and become hooked and drowned."
[edit] Australian fisheries
In Australia, two companies are licensed by the Australian Fisheries Management Agency (AFMA) to fish for Patagonian toothfish. The companies have legal access to the Heard Island and McDonald Islands fishery, and have quotas set by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources. Austral Fisheries is the larger of the two companies.[3]
3260 tonnes of the annual 3360 tonnes caught in Australian Antarctic waters is sold overseas, mainly to Japanese and US markets.[3]
[edit] References
- ^ Antarctica Project, The., Secretariat for the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition, The. 2001, April. Newsletter (Vol. 10, Iss. 1)
- ^ IUCN. 2003. Dolphins, Whales and Porpoises
- ^ a b The Age. 2007-11-25. Ari Sharp. "Melbourne develops a taste for medium rare toothfish". page 7.
- Clover, Charles. 2004. The End of the Line: How overfishing is changing the world and what we eat. Ebury Press, London. ISBN 0-09-189780-7
- Knecht, G. Bruce. 2006. Hooked: Pirates, Poaching, and the Perfect Fish. Rodale Books, New York. ISBN 1-59486-110-2
- Dissostichus eleginoides (TSN 642807). Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved on 19 March 2006.
- "Dissostichus eleginoides". FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. November 2005 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2005.
[edit] External links
- BBC News: Toothfish at risk from illegal catches
- Traffic.org: Patagonian Toothfish: Are Conservation and Trade Measures Working?
- Patagonian toothfish at CSIRO
- WGBH Forum Network: Hooked; Pirates, Poaching and the Perfect Fish G. Bruce Knecht, senior reporter, Wall Street Journal[4]
