VEGAN DAILY FRIEND:  Bluefin Tuna

• The southern bluefin tuna is found in open southern hemisphere waters of all the world’s oceans, and can reach over 8 feet long and weigh well over 800 pounds.  Reaching speeds that rival those of cars on a freeway, bluefin tuna can cross the Atlantic in fewer than 60 days.
• The onset of industrial fishing in the 1950s, in conjunction with ever improving technologies such as GPS, fishfinders, satellite imagery, etc., and the knowledge of migration routes, has led to the exploitation of southern bluefin tuna across its entire range.  The southern bluefin tuna is now classified as Critically Endangered.
• Last year, the Obama administration declined to grant Endangered Species Act protections to the Atlantic bluefin tuna, creating some controversy and dismay from several environmental groups.

PRINCIPAL THREAT:  Overfishing has driven bluefin tuna close to extinction, and they may soon completely disappear from the ocean.  Humans have such a taste for sushi that in 2011, one fish fetched $396,000 at a Japanese fish market.  Meanwhile, shifty politics has kept fishing quotas far above sustainable levels recommended by scientists.