Blackfish Overfished Reports Commission

[Leif]

Originally Posted by backbay

straight from the article "The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission reports the NewYork and New Jersey stock of blackfish is overfished but not experiencing overfishing,"

what the hell does that mean exactly?

Overfishing Vs. Overfished: The Same Thing?

When you see the word “overfishing” it’s only natural to think this only applies to, well, fishing. Although fishing adds significant pressure, fish stocks can also become “overfished” for many other reasons, including natural mortality, disease, and environmental conditions. Here’s the breakdown.


Overfishing

A stock that is subject to overfishing has a fishing mortality (harvest) rate that is higher than the rate that produces maximum sustainable yield (MSY). MSY is the largest long-term average catch or yield that can be taken from a stock or stock complex under prevailing ecological, environmental conditions and fishery technological characteristics.



Overfished

A stock that is overfished has a biomass level depleted to a degree that the stock’s capacity to produce MSY is jeopardized. A population can be overfished but be managed under a rebuilding plan that over time returns the population to a level that can support the MSY.