What is Overfishing?
Overfishing is the practice of removing too many fish for the environment to replenish, ultimately leading to the decrease of certain species. As overfishing continues to occur, the numbers of fish will grow less and less, until there are no more to continue reproducing. The idea of overfishing is often neglected by society, especially those causing it. Unfortunately, it is becoming more and more severe everyday, and its impacts will soon catch up with society. Currently, overfishing is a major problem for all the living organisms that inhabit the world's bodies of water. If this issue is not addressed time and time again, it will eventually lead to more serious problems that will directly affect the humans that make up this planet in addition to all the species that it harms and endangers along the way. Since overfishing can be a very lengthy subject, here is how overfishing has an impact on the Mediterranean Sea, an area where overfishing is currently the most predominant threat to the sea itself.
Causes of Overfishing in the Mediterranean
The main cause of overfishing in the Mediterranean Sea is clearly the large amount of fishing that takes place, both commercial and non-commercial. The graph on the right reveals that overfishing has had a larger impact on commercial fishing than the infamous BP oil spill! This graph is quite interesting, think about it; overfishing is caused by commercial fishers, but who is dealing with the consequences of overfishing when it comes to money lost? Commercial fishers! They seem to be hurting themselves at the end of the day! While this graph is a nationwide estimate, there are several aspects of the Mediterranean in particular that induce overfishing of the sea.
One major aspect of the Mediterranean Sea is the fact that it is completely enclosed by land, surrounded by three different countries and nineteen different nations that utilize the sea for their fishing needs. Since this sea alone has to provide fish for the diets of nineteen different populations, it is severely overfished, which leads to the next major aspect; the Mediterranean diet. |
One of the most popular components of the traditional Mediterranean diet is in fact fish. Unfortunately, with such a high consumption of fish by the humans that live in the Mediterranean, too many fish are being removed to fit the standards of their diets. Commercial fishing is responsible for fishing, and then selling the fish for profit in stores, restaurants, etc., which in turn then supports those with a Mediterranean diet high in fish.
On the other hand, there is a lot of non-commercial fishing that also takes place, including illegal fishing. Fishing is a very popular recreational activity among those of the Mediterranean. As mentioned before, there are nineteen different nations that surround the sea, allowing access to thousands of people who fish for fun on all sides of the sea. Considering the fact that 124 tons of fish are caught per year legally in the Mediterranean, and the fact that a large amount of illegal recreational fishing also takes place, overfishing is becoming a HUGE problem.
Effects of Overfishing in the Mediterranean
The number one threat to the Mediterranean Sea right now is overfishing, potentially affecting the lives of nearly 10,000 different species of fish that inhabit the area. Unfortunately, overfishing is slowly leading to a collapse of the ecosystem that makes up the Mediterranean Sea, and the fish that make up the sea are being directly affected. Too many fish are being removed too quickly, not allowing time for the fish to reproduce. An incredibly horrible example of this is the overfishing of the Bluefin Tuna in the Mediterranean Sea. Due to overfishing, this species has officially become endangered recently. Also, recent estimations have shown that common species that include tuna and swordfish may be completely extinct by 2048 if overfishing continues at the rate it is currently at, and as of right now more than 90 different species of marine fishes in Europe's waters are at risk of becoming extinct. Much of society neglects this issue and a large portion of them believe that it will occur in generations much after their time here on Earth, however many of those neglectors will still be alive in 2048 when this extinction occurs! As a result of the possible extinction of tuna and swordfish in the Mediterranean, other species of fish will be negatively affected by the extinction, too. Larger marine mammals will then be competing for the scarce amounts of smaller fish that are still left, which of course will then begin a decline in those larger creatures as they become malnourished.
Another very scary reality is that right now, 90% of the Mediterranean's larger predator fish are in critical decline. A good example of this is the decline of the Bottlenose dolphins in the Mediterranean Sea. The Bottlenose dolphins have recently experienced a loss in their primary food; the smaller species of fish that are being overfished! As a result, these dolphins are facing possible endangerment in their near future.
These are the current and near effects that the ecosystem of the Mediterranean is facing, however if something is not done about overfishing soon, the effects will begin to occur like a domino affect, slowly wiping out the entire ecosystem. According to research provided by National Geographic, if we continue to overfish the Mediterranean, the population that makes up the sea will be reduced to only microbes and jellyfish. Most fisheries will loose support and most likely crash if the situation gets this out of hand, because most people do not want to eat the microbes and jellyfish.
These are the current and near effects that the ecosystem of the Mediterranean is facing, however if something is not done about overfishing soon, the effects will begin to occur like a domino affect, slowly wiping out the entire ecosystem. According to research provided by National Geographic, if we continue to overfish the Mediterranean, the population that makes up the sea will be reduced to only microbes and jellyfish. Most fisheries will loose support and most likely crash if the situation gets this out of hand, because most people do not want to eat the microbes and jellyfish.
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