Catching Big Momma Curbs Ocean Fertility
Fishermen tend to hunt bigger fish as they bring bigger paychecks. This is why they target the biggest fish in the sea. However, this negatively impacts the fish because if the fishermen kill large female fish, they prevent those fish from reproducing. The larger the female fish is, the more babies it can produce, unlike female humans who are all born with the same amount of eggs regardless of their height and weight. Those larger female fish can physically hold more eggs and since they have already done most of their growing, they can use the energy they would've spent on growing to produce more eggs.
The problem is that the larger fish that fishermen like to hunt have a big impact on the environment. This lifestyle has led fish to mature and spawn at smaller sizes, which isn't good because smaller sizes means less babies which could mean reduced larvae survival. That means there's less fish to reproduce. This cycle continues and it's very hard to reverse. If we keep letting it happen without doing anything, then before we know it we won't have any fish left.
After reading this article, I realized that we need to do something about this so we can stop the fish population from declining further. To stop this, I think we should start eating less fish so there's less fish that needs to be fished, and therefore giving them more time to reproduce and get back on track. That would benefit the fish population in the long run. We should also try to encourage fish growth, maybe by giving them some more food or vitamins/minerals to grow and thrive.
Source: http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/catching-big-mama-fish-curbs-ocean-fertility/
Article in source written by Marah J. Hardt on November 6, 2014
The problem is that the larger fish that fishermen like to hunt have a big impact on the environment. This lifestyle has led fish to mature and spawn at smaller sizes, which isn't good because smaller sizes means less babies which could mean reduced larvae survival. That means there's less fish to reproduce. This cycle continues and it's very hard to reverse. If we keep letting it happen without doing anything, then before we know it we won't have any fish left.
After reading this article, I realized that we need to do something about this so we can stop the fish population from declining further. To stop this, I think we should start eating less fish so there's less fish that needs to be fished, and therefore giving them more time to reproduce and get back on track. That would benefit the fish population in the long run. We should also try to encourage fish growth, maybe by giving them some more food or vitamins/minerals to grow and thrive.
Source: http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/catching-big-mama-fish-curbs-ocean-fertility/
Article in source written by Marah J. Hardt on November 6, 2014