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Abstract

Only in the last century did humans overwhelmingly accept that fisheries resources are finite. Consequently, ‘there are more fish still in the sea than ever came out of it’ served as a popular metaphor for unbounded expectations for half a millennium, expectations that also extended to use of the planet in general. By reconstructing historical fishing back 1200 years, we identify when this metaphor actually ceased to be true. For some of our most important stocks, it has not been true for centuries, although surprisingly, for fishes globally, it applied until the last century. We demonstrate, however, that there can still be ‘plenty more fish in the sea’ and that with effective management they provide a continuous flow of benefits for our future.

Item Type:	Article
Authors/Creators:	Watson, RA and Pitcher, TJ and Jennings, S
Keywords:	conservation, global abundance, historical fishing, reconstruction
Journal or Publication Title:	Fish and Fisheries
Publisher:	Blackwell Publishing Ltd
ISSN:	1467-2960
DOI / ID Number:	https://doi.org/10.1111/faf.12128
Copyright Information:	Copyright 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd
Related URLs:	Google Scholar: Watson, RA UTAS Profile: Watson, RA
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