Marc Towers, while on a recent fishing trip off Nova Scotia, landed a 1,000-pound Atlantic bluefin tuna after a two-hour battle.
It falls well short of the all-tackle world record, a 1,496-pound specimen also landed off Nova Scotia, in 1979 by Ken Fraser.
Towers' catch was towed to port, lifted from the water via crane, and fork-lifted to the scale.
The Daily Mail reports that Towers' tuna will yield about 20,000 pieces of sushi and is expected to sell for more than $32,000 to a buyer in Japan.
Not everybody will be a fan of the catch, however.
Atlantic bluefin tuna are listed as endangered on the IUCN red list of threatened species, and the fishery is strictly regulated.
--Pete Thomas
--Image showing Marc Towers with his 1,000-pound tuna is courtesy of Marc Towers
Guys you really should read up on the subject. This fish was caught as part of a sustainable commercial harvest, Angler pay for the priveledge of catching these fish, the skipper takes the fish and makes the money from its sale, this goes to help sustain the local economy. rod and line anglers barely scratch the surface compared to the commercial longlines/factory ships. The fact that the comments above are all condemming the angler shows how ignorant and ill informed the eco/environmentalist are, before commenting do some research on the matter.
Posted by: Dougie Grove | Nov 29, 2012 at 06:39 AM
I am actually happy for this guy. Marc is not the big problem. It is us the consumers. We are the idiots. If all of us decide to consume less tuna every month, one can just imagine the results. Having less tuna sandwiches, tuna pasta, sushi is no sacrifice for us omnivores. If we just avoid having tuna for 3 years, avoid eating 2 million tons a year, hundreds of thousands of tuna would be able to reproduce.
Posted by: Jo | Nov 29, 2012 at 04:53 AM
Canada has assessed bluefin tuna as endangered. It is taking public comments until December 14. Send an email telling them to stop fishing these giants until they recover. SARA_LEP@dfo-mpo.gc.ca.
At the same time Canada asked for more quota at this months international meeting. This is the problem with the system. We know bluefin are endangered but no one is willing to stop fishing.
Boycott bluefin tuna. www.bluefinboycott.org.
Posted by: C Kilduff | Nov 28, 2012 at 09:06 AM
Why is this dolt allowed to wack an endangered species?
Posted by: Chris Pollon | Nov 28, 2012 at 07:49 AM
Mr. Towers,
Is it ignorance or greed that made you catch a fish which balances on the extremely thin line of extinction (world wide)? I would definately like to understand what goes on in someone's brain who catches fishes like these of which you surely must know your children nor grandchildren will ever be able to see them alive during their life times... Here in Europe we have supermarkets which will NOT sell "(highly) endangered" species (such as the Bluefin Tuna) and they take pride in that.
As for you, and to my humble opinion, you should feel very ashamed!
Posted by: P. Schampaert | Nov 28, 2012 at 04:19 AM
Congratulations Marc Towers. You are officially the most idiotic and environmentaly ignorant recreational fisher on the planet. These fish are the leopards of the sea, they can swim at speeds of up to 120km/h, weigh more than a small car and are more endangered than the polar bear. These fish are expected to be wiped off the face of the earth any time now with some scientists predicting the species reproductive extinction in the next year or so. Where are the criminal charges that should accompany such ecocidal actions. Real fishermen catch and release species of this nature and don't target endangered species.
Hang your head in shame!
Posted by: Ross Weir | Nov 28, 2012 at 01:08 AM
Another one bites the dust, what a shame so many will put ego before eco.
Posted by: Deborah Bluangel | Nov 28, 2012 at 12:51 AM