WWF: Bigeye Tuna Overfished And In Danger Of Extinction

Cambridge, United Kingdom (AHN) - Wildlife protection group WWF on Thursday said the bigeye tuna is on the brink of extinction because of excessive fishing.

The bigeye tuna, which is used to make sashimi and sushi, is one of the most common types of tuna popular in Japan, a country that consumes a quarter of the world's supply of the fish.

A WWF statement read, "Bigeye tuna are under threat because authorities are failing to recognize the dire extent of overfishing."

The group said in order to arrest the chilling trend, authorities in tuna-fishing countries should set a limit on the catch and set programs to restore the population of the bigeye tuna.

TRAFFIC, a monitoring group of the WWF and the IUCN-The World Conservation Union, said catching young or juvenile bigeye tuna reduces the availability of adults and compromises the stock because nothing will be breeding new young.

Glenn Sant, TRAFFIC's Global Marine Program head, said "Instead they end up being worth a few cents in a can, and tuna stocks are on the verge of collapse. The biological and economic future of the bigeye tuna fishery is at serious risk."