Deep-sea fish species decimated in a generation

At least five species of deepwater exotic fish – only caught since the 1970s – are now on the critically endangered list, according to Canadian scientists. The researchers say many other species are likely to be similarly endangered and, worse, there seems little hope of saving them.

Most commercial fish, such as cod, live on the continental shelves. But overfishing in the 1970s led fishing vessels to move on to a hitherto-unexploited wealth of strange-looking fish on the slopes of the continental shelves, down to 1600 metres.

The bonanza was short-lived. Most of these fisheries peaked after five years and collapsed after 15, says Jennifer Devine, a fisheries scientist at Memorial University in St. John’s, Newfoundland. The deep-sea species reproduce slowly, often not until their late teens, so they do not recover readily from excessive fishing.

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