Summary
A new study published in a special edition of ICES Journal of Marine Science reveals that going after the biggest fish in the sea when those are the females is kind of like killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. In our species, all women are born with roughly the same amount of eggs about 1 million regardless of height or weight. Not so in fish and many other animals; bigger females make more eggs and thus make more babies than small fish. Big, Old, Fat, Fecund, Female, Fish also known as BOFFFFs are individuals that contribute far more to future generations than other members of the population. BOFFFFs deserve some disproportionate respect because they physically hold more eggs and are able to manufacture bigger eggs too. Studies show that older and maybe even wiser females spawn eggs in different locations and over longer periods of time than younger females. They're good at making more fish, only trouble is that they are also our favorite fish to catch. The type of fishing gear we use, such as nets that allow smaller fish to swim free while entrapping the larger individuals, often plays an important role. Grown-up fish tend to hang out in different locations than juveniles or young adults similar to us. Trawls scraped along certain slopes or long-lines set at specific depths selectively remove the bigger fish. The loss of BOFFFFs is bad news for next year's spawning cycle, but such size selective fishing has graver consequences. Research has shown the selective pressure can be so strong that it actually changes the genetic structure of a population. The problem is, with fish, smaller size means fewer babies, and often, reduced survival of larvae. The cycle continues and is very hard to reverse removing fishing pressure for a few seasons won't cut it; takes a long time for such extreme effects to bounce back.
A new study published in a special edition of ICES Journal of Marine Science reveals that going after the biggest fish in the sea when those are the females is kind of like killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. In our species, all women are born with roughly the same amount of eggs about 1 million regardless of height or weight. Not so in fish and many other animals; bigger females make more eggs and thus make more babies than small fish. Big, Old, Fat, Fecund, Female, Fish also known as BOFFFFs are individuals that contribute far more to future generations than other members of the population. BOFFFFs deserve some disproportionate respect because they physically hold more eggs and are able to manufacture bigger eggs too. Studies show that older and maybe even wiser females spawn eggs in different locations and over longer periods of time than younger females. They're good at making more fish, only trouble is that they are also our favorite fish to catch. The type of fishing gear we use, such as nets that allow smaller fish to swim free while entrapping the larger individuals, often plays an important role. Grown-up fish tend to hang out in different locations than juveniles or young adults similar to us. Trawls scraped along certain slopes or long-lines set at specific depths selectively remove the bigger fish. The loss of BOFFFFs is bad news for next year's spawning cycle, but such size selective fishing has graver consequences. Research has shown the selective pressure can be so strong that it actually changes the genetic structure of a population. The problem is, with fish, smaller size means fewer babies, and often, reduced survival of larvae. The cycle continues and is very hard to reverse removing fishing pressure for a few seasons won't cut it; takes a long time for such extreme effects to bounce back.
Reflection
Before reading this article I had no idea that BOFFFFs contribute far more to future generations than other members of the population. I found it interesting how BOFFFFs are able to manufacture not just more eggs; they make bigger eggs too. Like they pack their growing larvae with more energy that reserves in the form of yolk, which gives their growing babies a head start in growth and development. Another one that I found was that BOFFFFs are able to produce higher numbers of batches over extended spawning seasons than smaller/younger females. This is a good way of keeping the ecosystem stable, but the only problem is that BOFFFFs are humans favorite fish to catch. Targeting specific habitats can also lead to a disproportionate take of larger, older fish like us, grown-up fish tend to hang out in different locations than juveniles or young adults.
Before reading this article I had no idea that BOFFFFs contribute far more to future generations than other members of the population. I found it interesting how BOFFFFs are able to manufacture not just more eggs; they make bigger eggs too. Like they pack their growing larvae with more energy that reserves in the form of yolk, which gives their growing babies a head start in growth and development. Another one that I found was that BOFFFFs are able to produce higher numbers of batches over extended spawning seasons than smaller/younger females. This is a good way of keeping the ecosystem stable, but the only problem is that BOFFFFs are humans favorite fish to catch. Targeting specific habitats can also lead to a disproportionate take of larger, older fish like us, grown-up fish tend to hang out in different locations than juveniles or young adults.