The most obvious impact of overfishing is on the fish. The fish are treated bad from the beginning (when they are caught) as the gear used to catch them is not safe for the fish. They are then put into spaces with up to thousands of other fish. To make it even worse, the fisherman use cruel techniques to kill the fish, but some aren't killed straightaway, they are left to slowly die.
Though overfishing is a cheap and easy way to fish large amounts at a time, it kills other sea life that was not intended on being caught, otherwise known as by catch. The nets do not specifically target the fish the fisherman are wanting to get, they are simply dragged along the sea bed, bringing along anything that is caught in the net. Therefore, various unwanted species are caught. That is not to mention the reefs that are damaged when the nets are dragged along the sea bed.
Whilst some boats stay in areas for a small amount of time, the impacts of the environment around the place can last for years due to ghost fishing. Ghost fishing occurs when boats simply loose nets that they have placed, therefore, fish and other sea life are constantly getting caught in the net/s. Without food around them, and separated from their family, they simply die.
Due to the fact that it is mainly a few types of fish being caught, the biodiversity of the marine life decreases. When so many people are fishing tuna, for example, it reduces the amount of tuna in the sea dramatically. Not only does it cause extinction of the species itself, but it also affects the whole food web, as species rely on them for food, and other species need to be reduced (eaten).
Through the act of going out and fishing, pollution is being dropped into the sea. Most boats drop oil and other chemicals in the water, where it is then littered through the environment. Even the fact that humans are close by causes pollution, as any rubbish could be dropped into the sea. Fish and other sea life could either digest the pollution, or get caught in it, and therefore die.
These factors may not seem too big individually, but with all of them put together they are deadly. They kill the marine life that lives in the sea, therefore it affects the ecosystems and food webs, which is also due to the rapid reduction.
(Impacted places and species - http://www.conserve-energy-future.com/causes-effects-solutions-of-overfishing.php)
The Arctic
Coastal East Africa
The Coral Triangle (comprised of waters off of Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and Timor Leste)
Gulf of California
Mesoamerican Reef (off the coasts of Belize, Mexico, Honduras, and Guatemala)
Southern Chile
The Galapagos
Bigeye tuna
Bluefin tuna
Skipjack tuna
Yellowfin tuna
Albacore tuna
Abelone (from Japan and China)
Atlantic and Pacific cod
Atlantic Halibut
Spiny lobster (from the Caribbean area)
Mahi Mahi (from central to south America)
Orange roughy
Atlantic sardines
Nearly 70 species of shark
Rockfish
Atlantic sardines
Squid (from Asia)
Though overfishing is a cheap and easy way to fish large amounts at a time, it kills other sea life that was not intended on being caught, otherwise known as by catch. The nets do not specifically target the fish the fisherman are wanting to get, they are simply dragged along the sea bed, bringing along anything that is caught in the net. Therefore, various unwanted species are caught. That is not to mention the reefs that are damaged when the nets are dragged along the sea bed.
Whilst some boats stay in areas for a small amount of time, the impacts of the environment around the place can last for years due to ghost fishing. Ghost fishing occurs when boats simply loose nets that they have placed, therefore, fish and other sea life are constantly getting caught in the net/s. Without food around them, and separated from their family, they simply die.
Due to the fact that it is mainly a few types of fish being caught, the biodiversity of the marine life decreases. When so many people are fishing tuna, for example, it reduces the amount of tuna in the sea dramatically. Not only does it cause extinction of the species itself, but it also affects the whole food web, as species rely on them for food, and other species need to be reduced (eaten).
Through the act of going out and fishing, pollution is being dropped into the sea. Most boats drop oil and other chemicals in the water, where it is then littered through the environment. Even the fact that humans are close by causes pollution, as any rubbish could be dropped into the sea. Fish and other sea life could either digest the pollution, or get caught in it, and therefore die.
These factors may not seem too big individually, but with all of them put together they are deadly. They kill the marine life that lives in the sea, therefore it affects the ecosystems and food webs, which is also due to the rapid reduction.
(Impacted places and species - http://www.conserve-energy-future.com/causes-effects-solutions-of-overfishing.php)
The Arctic
Coastal East Africa
The Coral Triangle (comprised of waters off of Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and Timor Leste)
Gulf of California
Mesoamerican Reef (off the coasts of Belize, Mexico, Honduras, and Guatemala)
Southern Chile
The Galapagos
Bigeye tuna
Bluefin tuna
Skipjack tuna
Yellowfin tuna
Albacore tuna
Abelone (from Japan and China)
Atlantic and Pacific cod
Atlantic Halibut
Spiny lobster (from the Caribbean area)
Mahi Mahi (from central to south America)
Orange roughy
Atlantic sardines
Nearly 70 species of shark
Rockfish
Atlantic sardines
Squid (from Asia)