Wicked Tuna: Bluefin Experts: Richard Ruais

The bluefin tuna travel. Their migration route is for two reasons. One is to eat and the other one is to have babies, to spawn. We know they spawn in at least the Gulf of Mexico and in the Mediterranean Sea, but to stay here in New England so that we can catch a pod of the sustainable catch, they need to be able to eat herring. They need to be able to eat whiting, bluefish and other types of [inaudible 00:24] . Around the middle 1990’s, the herring fishery grew exponentially in the United States and it’s partially the result of these boats across the harbor. These are relatively new boats that have been introduced. They’re called mid‑water trawlers. 160 feet long. Big horsepower. They fished right in our coastal waters.

What used to be a persane fishery that was limited to how much herring they could take became this very efficient fleet of mega trawlers, if you will. They were able to catch vast quantities in a quick time.