With the global pandemic impacting the work of human fisheries observers, electronic monitoring (EM) in global tuna fisheries is in the spotlight more than ever. Here are three ways fisheries managers can act to fully embrace EM today, while enabling a long and successful future…
[Featured Blog]
Working Together to Meet the Challenges of Covid-19
The Covid-19 pandemic has been a waking nightmare, unravelling normal life as we have known it — a unifying traumatic event that has been compared to the world wars of the last century, although of course there is no precedent in our lifetimes for the…
The world’s largest ray is also one of its most vulnerable. Manta rays, and their close cousins the devil rays, are incredible animals. They have large brains and complex social behaviors. They are also gentle giants that glide through tropical waters and attract SCUBA divers…
Many Points on the Horizon Are Looking Much Brighter, But Regulators, Industry Remain Adrift in Challenging Seas.
One of the biggest fish in Silicon Valley, Elon Musk, stirs up turbulence with just about everything he says. But, as I reviewed 2019’s record of progress in tuna sustainability, one of his comments came back to me, calm and clear. “I’m learning patience,” he…
One species at a time, ISSF researchers confirm the value of an innovation that improves echo-sounding technology
By Gala Moreno, PhD Your lunchtime tuna melt or sashimi platter may seem tame, but the main ingredient probably was swimming wild in the tropics not too long ago. Although that wild existence makes your tuna tasty and firm, it limits the ability of fishers…
Harvest Strategies, Well Managed At-Sea Transshipment Top ISSF’s List of “Asks” for this Year’s WCPFC Meeting
The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) is responsible for the effective long-term conservation and management of highly migratory fish stocks in the western and central Pacific Ocean (WCPO). With about 52 percent of the global production of tuna coming from the WCPO —…
But Commission Fails to Act on Transshipment Regulations, Turtles, and Sharks
After a week of intense negotiations, 800 participants took decisive action at the close of this year’s meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). The Commission made important progress by acting to protect the region’s overfished bigeye tuna stock and…
ISSF Priorities for this Year’s Meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas
In the Atlantic Ocean region, managers will soon have the opportunity to improve the sustainability of their tropical tuna fisheries. And given the inaction at last year’s meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), this year’s to-do list is especially…
ISSF’s new Guide to Non-entangling and Biodegradable FADs supports the conservation work of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission
ISSF’s new Guide to Non-entangling and Biodegradable FADs equips the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) with scientific research to back stronger sustainability measures for FAD fishers in its region. The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) oversees the long-term conservation of highly…
A Recap of the 2019 IATTC Annual Meeting
The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) recently concluded its 94th Annual Meeting in Bilbao. And while the Commission took some positive steps in line with the science-based asks made by ISSF and WWF, overall, little progress was made. Before we detail this lack of progress,…