California’s last anchovies crowd in the Monterey Bay
Several conservation groups and whale watching operators are very concerned about the anchovies in the Monterey Bay.
They’re worried they’re being over-fished, and want something to be done about it. Recently, fishermen have been hauling out 120 tons of anchovies every night, but those anchovies are some of the last along California’s coast.
Still, the groups want to make it clear they’re not against fishermen doing their job, they’re just concerned about a lack of data on the anchovy population and health.
Oceana’s Geoff Shester said there hasn’t been an analysis on anchovies in more than 20 years.
“The anchovy abundance out here, and off the entire state, has gotten to some of the lowest we’ve seen since the 1950s,” Shester said. “Scientists are calling it an actual collapse.”
Marine Biologist and Whale Watching Operator Nancy Black said marine animals and fishermen are both taking from the same source, driving down the anchovy population.
“Like 200 humpbacks… up to 2,000 sea lions at times, thousands of birds, salmon, other sport fish… all feeding,” Black said. “Then the fisherman are fishing for the anchovies now, and they’re all taking from the same source. “
Anchovies are an important part of the ecosystem. That’s why these groups say if nothing is done, there could be long-term impacts.
“We’re really worried that right now we are seeing major die-offs of sea lion pups and pelicans because they’re starving and not able to reproduce,” Shester said. “And that’s because there’s not enough sardines and anchovies out there.”
“We’ve noticed the numbers of whales have dropped significantly,” Black said. “We were seeing maybe up to 60 or 70 whales, and now there’s about 15 or so scattered out.”
The bottom line, both Black and Shester are worried the government is not managing this situation properly.
Oceana, along with other groups and whale watching operators, are asking federal fishery managers to take quick action, such as an update on annual catch limits.
The Pacific Fishery Management Council in Portland has that request and will consider it during a meeting early next month.
