Overfishing the most important fish in the sea?

[n2doc]

By Craig Malisow
Published on January 19, 2010

In 2003, Danny the polar bear, a resident of the Cincinnati Zoo, was having severe skin problems.

The 800-lb. Arctic native's hide was itchy and inflamed; constant scratching wore away fur, exposing the lesions scrawled across the black skin underneath. He was, according to what had to have been the dumbest corporate press release of 2003, "unsuitable for public viewing." Listless and depressed, Danny "had lost interest in eating and interacting with other bears."

So zookeepers turned to the company that would subsequently issue that press release, Houston-based Omega Protein. The largest commercial harvester of an obscure fish called menhaden (men-hay-den), used mostly for fishmeal and fertilizer, Omega was hyping its more palatable product — refined fish oil. Rich in essential fatty acids, the oil was already FDA-approved for use in certain foods, including margarine, baked goods and baking mixes. Health-conscious people could also pop OmegaPure capsules.

This fish oil, with its life-affirming long-chain omega-3 acids, was going to save Danny the bear.

more:

http://www.houstonpress.com/2010-01-21/news/net-gains-and-losses/

[eppur_se_muova]

1. They're going after krill already -- even lower in the food chain.

Which will starve everything higher up in the chain.

[MisterP]

2. H. Bruce Franklin's book:

http://books.google.com/books?id=UcWJCqKgtZAC&dq=Most+Important+Fish+in+the+Sea+franklin&source=gbs_navlinks_s

[Po_d Mainiac]

3. One summer was all it took to to wipe the pogies from the Gulf of Maine