Argentine hake is critically overfishedOverfished:
A stock is overfished when the stock size has decreased so far that it can no longer produce a maximum sustainable yield. The size of the fish populations is insufficient to reproduce in the long term. . The biomassBiomass:
Biomass is the mass (weight) of living organisms in an area or ecosystem at the time. of this stockStock:
The fish of a particular species reproducing in the same area in the same period. is historically low. If current fishing pressureFishing pressure:
Fishing pressure is a result of the fishing effort/amount of fishing on a stock, which determines the fishing mortality. Fishing mortality is the share of the fish stock that dies annually as a result of fishing. does not decrease, this will have significant consequences for the future of this species.
This bottomBottom trawls:
A fishing technique in which cone-shaped nets terminating in a codend are dragged through the water column or along the bottom. trawl fishery has high bycatchBycatch:
Species caught next to species targeted for fishery. By-catches can consist of non-commercial species and species that are too small, and can be kept (this part is sometimes called by-product) or thrown back into the sea (discards). of seabirds and marine mammals. In addition, this fishing method is in contact with the bottom, which can disturb sensitive benthic species and habitats. Because of the important role this species fills in the ecosystem, this fishery combined with overfishingOverfishing:
There is so much fish caught that the size of the stock has diminished so far that it can no longer produce a maximum sustainable yield. The size of the fish populations is insufficient to reproduce in the long term. can have major impacts on the food web in this area.
This species is partially monitored, making trends in stock development even more difficult to see. Argentine hake is managed by catch limitsCatch limits:
The maximum amount of fish of a species caught per country, per year. , but these do not appear to be effective in rebuilding this population. ManagementManagement:
The regulations surrounding fisheries and aquaculture that ensure that production is carried out within legal frameworks and that sustainability can be assured. of this species is not effective.