Encuentro de los mares

Presentation

Will we be fishing lanternfish, the fish of the ocean’s dark realm?

In some countries myctophids are a new fishing resource to be exploited, even though this creates controversy within the scientific community and a number of environmental organisations.

Myctophids are the dominant species in oceans at a depth of between 200 and 1000 m, and they are also the ocean's most abundant species.  The small myctophids embark upon our planet's largest migration, when countless specimens rise to the surface every day at sunset to eat plankton, and descend into the depths again at dawn. This is why myctophids are known as the sundown fish. 

It was only recently, following the Malaspina Expedition, that their biomass was estimated to be 10 times greater than previous estimates, thereby increasing the global fish biomass in oceans by the same amount. We will discover the controversy behind their possible use as food with Susana Agustí.