6 ms·

I watched a documentary years ago about jellyfish invading Japan. Basically, the jellyfish population was exploding because the fish didn't exist to eat the ba

I watched a documentary years ago about jellyfish invading Japan. Basically, the jellyfish population was exploding because the fish didn't exist to eat the baby jellyfish and keep them under control. The Japanese fishermen were furious that they kept catching jellyfish, rather than the fish that they wanted. They were the cause of their own suffering. Sounds like things haven't changed... I hesitate to think that Japan could do something about it though. If they stopped over-fishing, that would just attract Chinese fishermen who would fill the gaps. Just can't win without global cooperation.

thfuran 3y ago
They could start eating jellyfish to pick up the slack.
- rolobio 3y ago
  Yes, that is the second half of the documentary. They were trying to come up with delicious recipes to take advantage of the situation. I don't imagine I would like to eat jellyfish either, but I would certainly give it a try.
  - namtab00 3y ago
    it doesn't taste like anything... it's 90%+ water, and water solid remains is basically tofu: absorbs the flavor of what it's cooked with
  - hardwaregeek 3y ago
    The Chinese prepare it quite well! It's great with some chili oil in a salad
  - pvaldes 3y ago
    > They were trying to come up with delicious recipes to take advantage of the situation And this plan will be a failure from the start. The pool of edible species is just a very small part of the total. Leatherback turtles eat jellyfishes. What if we stop killing them instead? or increase the ludicrous amount of resources allocated to protect turtle nests?
- pvaldes 3y ago
  95% water. The economics just don't work. Is spending dollars in fuel to move tons of water from the sea, trow the 90% again to the sea and sell the remains for pennies.
- throw__away7391 3y ago
  Maybe? I mean sea urchin is delicious, popular, and sells at a high price but still seems to threaten a lot of kelp forest
- AndrewKemendo 3y ago
  Unfortunately not They are not even remotely substitutes nutritionally
tastyfreeze 3y ago
Fish management doesn't really require global cooperation. It does require some sacrifice. Where I live 100 years ago herring spawn covered nearly every shoreline. I live in an archipelago so there is a lot of coastline. Now there are sporadic patches of herring spawn. The herring fishery is a multi million dollar industry. Herring is also the base of the larger fin-fish population. We can't harvest all the food for larger species and harvest larger species and expect everything to just be fine. If there is an abundance of food for a species they will spawn in greater numbers (well known predator-prey dynamic). Sacrificing the herring fishery would allow larger species a path to build populations. That is something that can be done at a local level without global cooperation. Don't harvest all the food for the larger fish we like to eat.
- tw04 3y ago
  >That is something that can be done at a local level without global cooperation. You're assuming some foreign operator won't come to your local waters to illegally fish. China has shown they will fish literally anywhere they can get away with it. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/09/26/world/asia/china-fishing-south-america.html https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/09/26/world/asia/ch...
  - tastyfreeze 3y ago
    That is what a military is for...
    - dpkirchner 3y ago
      Aka global cooperation by force.
    - deleted 3y ago
      [deleted]
  - soperj 3y ago
    So has Japan.
mschuster91 3y ago
> If they stopped over-fishing, that would just attract Chinese fishermen who would fill the gaps. Just can't win without global cooperation. There's a way to deal with intruders (or, let's call it by its name, pirates) into maritime space: stop their ships, seize them or torpedo them. It's only a question of time IMHO until this happens, China has been making enemies at sea in its neighborhood, even up to Africa, for years now.
yongjik 3y ago
> If they stopped over-fishing, that would just attract Chinese fishermen who would fill the gaps. Maybe that's true, but isn't this the exact same argument used by Americans: "Why should I stop driving my SUV, when China will burn that gas anyway?"
- strangattractor 3y ago
  False Equivalence When the gas is gone those SUVs will simply stop working. When the fish are gone large populations of people will not have sufficient food to eat.
  - adrianN 3y ago
    When enough CO2 is in the air large populations of people will not have sufficient food to eat either.
- smileysteve 3y ago
  moreso, "why should the government [because private industry would anyway with the prices] invest in solar and wind instead of coal, China will burn the coal anyway" SUVs/Trucks -> Midsize by individuals driving 95% < 30 miles is less meaningful change than many other changes. (especially considering the future of the SUV is hybrid/electric). The math changes if the question becomes, instead of size of car, reducing the car/household for walking, biking, or carpooling.

thfuran 3y ago

They could start eating jellyfish to pick up the slack.

rolobio 3y ago
Yes, that is the second half of the documentary. They were trying to come up with delicious recipes to take advantage of the situation. I don't imagine I would like to eat jellyfish either, but I would certainly give it a try.
- namtab00 3y ago
  it doesn't taste like anything... it's 90%+ water, and water solid remains is basically tofu: absorbs the flavor of what it's cooked with
- hardwaregeek 3y ago
  The Chinese prepare it quite well! It's great with some chili oil in a salad
- pvaldes 3y ago
  > They were trying to come up with delicious recipes to take advantage of the situation And this plan will be a failure from the start. The pool of edible species is just a very small part of the total. Leatherback turtles eat jellyfishes. What if we stop killing them instead? or increase the ludicrous amount of resources allocated to protect turtle nests?
pvaldes 3y ago
95% water. The economics just don't work. Is spending dollars in fuel to move tons of water from the sea, trow the 90% again to the sea and sell the remains for pennies.
throw__away7391 3y ago
Maybe? I mean sea urchin is delicious, popular, and sells at a high price but still seems to threaten a lot of kelp forest
AndrewKemendo 3y ago
Unfortunately not They are not even remotely substitutes nutritionally

tastyfreeze 3y ago

Fish management doesn't really require global cooperation. It does require some sacrifice. Where I live 100 years ago herring spawn covered nearly every shoreline. I live in an archipelago so there is a lot of coastline. Now there are sporadic patches of herring spawn. The herring fishery is a multi million dollar industry. Herring is also the base of the larger fin-fish population. We can't harvest all the food for larger species and harvest larger species and expect everything to just be fine. If there is an abundance of food for a species they will spawn in greater numbers (well known predator-prey dynamic). Sacrificing the herring fishery would allow larger species a path to build populations. That is something that can be done at a local level without global cooperation. Don't harvest all the food for the larger fish we like to eat.

tw04 3y ago
>That is something that can be done at a local level without global cooperation. You're assuming some foreign operator won't come to your local waters to illegally fish. China has shown they will fish literally anywhere they can get away with it. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/09/26/world/asia/china-fishing-south-america.html https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/09/26/world/asia/ch...
- tastyfreeze 3y ago
  That is what a military is for...
  - dpkirchner 3y ago
    Aka global cooperation by force.
  - deleted 3y ago
    [deleted]
- soperj 3y ago
  So has Japan.

mschuster91 3y ago

> If they stopped over-fishing, that would just attract Chinese fishermen who would fill the gaps. Just can't win without global cooperation. There's a way to deal with intruders (or, let's call it by its name, pirates) into maritime space: stop their ships, seize them or torpedo them. It's only a question of time IMHO until this happens, China has been making enemies at sea in its neighborhood, even up to Africa, for years now.

yongjik 3y ago

> If they stopped over-fishing, that would just attract Chinese fishermen who would fill the gaps. Maybe that's true, but isn't this the exact same argument used by Americans: "Why should I stop driving my SUV, when China will burn that gas anyway?"

strangattractor 3y ago
False Equivalence When the gas is gone those SUVs will simply stop working. When the fish are gone large populations of people will not have sufficient food to eat.
- adrianN 3y ago
  When enough CO2 is in the air large populations of people will not have sufficient food to eat either.
smileysteve 3y ago
moreso, "why should the government [because private industry would anyway with the prices] invest in solar and wind instead of coal, China will burn the coal anyway" SUVs/Trucks -> Midsize by individuals driving 95% < 30 miles is less meaningful change than many other changes. (especially considering the future of the SUV is hybrid/electric). The math changes if the question becomes, instead of size of car, reducing the car/household for walking, biking, or carpooling.