For the first time in nearly 90 years, bluefin tuna have been caught in the North Sea, a development celebrated by fishermen and conservationists as a sign of a recovering marine ecosystem. The most recent catch occurred at Whitby, a port on the North Yorkshire coast that was once a hub for big game fishing.
The large specimen weighed 746 pounds (338 kilograms). The crew of the Whitby vessel Dominator landed the fish on Monday, marking what is believed to be the first bluefin tuna caught in the area since 1939. This sighting follows a trend of bluefin tuna returning to waters off Devon and Cornwall in recent years, where a sustainable fishery has since developed.
Bluefin tuna were once abundant in the North Sea, drawing Hollywood stars in the 1950s who participated in big game fishing. Whitby holds the British record for a bluefin caught on rod and line, an 851-pound fish landed in 1933. However, due to overfishing of herring stocks, a primary food source, the species largely disappeared from the North Sea by the 1960s.
"Bluefin tuna are also top predators who can only be in these waters if the ecosystems underneath them are healthy," explained Dr. Lucy Hawkes of the University of Exeter, which monitors the return of bluefin tuna. This suggests that the reappearance of the tuna indicates improved conditions in the North Sea's ecosystem.
Under current regulations from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), fishing vessels are issued annual licenses to catch and land a limited quota of bluefin tuna. These fish can then be sold at market for significant sums.