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National Geographic : 1982 Aug
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Last year the remaining five caught fewer than 500 giants. Publicity, however, has focused on the sport fishery's decline. Take Nova Scotia, where bluefin, the local "horse mackerel," were first caught with a dory cod line about 1870. Teams from 19 nations-a who's who of international sport fishermen-once competed in the annual International Tuna Cup Match, inaugurated in 1937. Then the bluefin departed. Only one was caught in 1975, none the following year. The match has not been held since. Newfoundland's rod-and-reel fishery, launched in 1956, peaked in 1966 with 388 giants. I first became involved with research on these magnificent beasts during that rec ord season in Conception Bay. Newfound land's 1981 catch: three bluefin. Today, North Lake, Prince Edward Is land, operating some 50 boats during Au gust and September, proclaims itself Tuna Capital of the World. From 578 giants in 1974 it dropped to a mere 55 fish last year. Since the fleets that harvest the highly mi gratory tuna operate worldwide, conserva tion must be international. Concern over their decline led to the founding in 1966 of the International Commission for the Con servation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). The overfished bluefin had sent many warning signals. Among them were reduced catches of all size groups despite increased fishing, more recaptures of tagged bluefin, and a scarcity of new recruits to the medium and giant ranges. In spite of ICCAT's regulations, recent data reveal a continuing decline: a 63 per cent drop-off in the Atlantic bluefin catch from 45,000 tons in 1964 to 16,500 tons in 1980. Last February ICCAT nations agreed to halt bluefin fishing in the western Atlantic for two years, except for a limited annual catch for scientific purposes-to monitor The big get bigger: Thousand-pounders(left) were proportionatelyfewer in the past. Overfishinghas devastatedall age groups, particularlymiddle-range bluefin - tomorrow's giants and today's most crucial breeding stock. Old-timers of 30 years, weighing 1,500 pounds, keep growing and may live to age 35. The headof a harvested tuna (above) feeds other sea creaturesin St. MargaretsBay, Nova Scotia. Plightof the Bluefin Tuna 231
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