Tunas Bluefin

The species are listed as Near Threatened, with nearly two-thirds making it to the Least Concern category. The most risk with five of the eight species in the threatened categories Tunas, including: Southern bluefin; Atlantic bluefin; Bigeye; Yellowfin and Albacore.

Tunas

The IUCN Species Survival Commission's Tuna and Billfish Specialist Group, Senior Scientist of the U.S National Marine Fisheries Service, and lead author of the paper. Dr Bruce B says, "This is the first time that fishery scientists, ichthyologists and conservationists have come together to jointly produce an assessment of the threats facing a commercially important group of fishes".

Many species in economically extreme high value, the information should prove invaluable in helping governments make decisions to safe-guard these species, and has come about just in time for the 3rd Joint Meeting of the Tuna Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMO) being held in La Jolla, California, July 11-15.

Dr Kent Carpenter says, all three bluefin tuna species are ceptible to collapse under continued excessive fishing pressure. The Southern Bluefin has already essentially crashed, with little hope of recovery.The western Atlantic Bluefin stocks are at risk of collapse as they are showing little sign that the population is rebuilding following a significant reduction in the 1970s.