In Pursuit of Giants - Assignment Example

?In Pursuit of Giants How much does In Pursuit of Giants agree or clash with your view of the world, and what you consider right and wrong?  In pursuit of Giants is an account given by Matt Gigney on the poor fishing practices that has led to decline of certain fish species such as Bluefin tuna, swordfish, and giant marlin. In pursuit of Giants is a great and precise depiction of the inshore life and the greedy nature of humans. I agree with the arguments posited by Rigney regarding the world of fishing, which is characterized by regulatory corruption. It is alarming to realize that management authorities that deal with commercial fishing are doing so little irrespective of the poor fishing methods that result in large quantities of bycatch. It is only by changing the mentality of human particularly the fishermen that the aquatic life will be protected from possible extinction. It is wrongful for a few individuals to engage in practices that benefit only a few but has dire consequences suffered by all. A good example is overfishing, which destroys aquatic life affecting even those who do not practice it. 2. How were your views and opinions challenged or changed by your reading of In Pursuit of Giants, if at all?  Before reading this book, I considered humans dynamic in that they can change their behaviors depending on the situation. However, reading this book made me realize it is not always the case. This is because people continue fishing using inappropriate methods irrespective of the fact that the species they are capturing are at the verge of extinction. The fisheries management, which is supposed to facilitate conservation of aquatic life, involve themselves in corrupt deals, which end up worsening the crisis. It is pathetic to realize that the same governments that obtain a lot of revenue from export of fish are doing little to protect the life of the endangered fish species. 3. Name three industrial fishing practices mentioned in the book, and explain how they create bycatch and harm marine life.  Fishing can be done in large scale or small scale. Fishing is a practice that leads to killing of the highest number of animals. Large scale, commercial or industrial fishing entails capturing of large quantities of fish. In most large-scale fishing, destructive fishing methodologies are used, which leads to inadvertent capture of immature fishes as well as other aquatic organisms commonly referred to as bycatch. Some of the methods that lead to bycatch and have been mentioned in Rigney’s book include trawling, seining, and long lining. The above-mentioned methods are a true cruelty towards aquatic animals. Trawling entails using nets that are hooked to two t Using trawling as a fishing method results of both target and non-target species. Trawling, particularly bottom trawling leads to capture of large quantities of bycatch, which include all organisms that happen to be along the path of the trawl nets. Most of the bycatch die as the nets are dragged along the ocean floor while other dies when the nets are hauled from the ocean due to changes in pressure. This is commonly referred to as decompression. Additionally, the method leads to destruction of the ocean beds. Mid-water trawling is another commercial fishing method commonly used in different parts of the world and entails immersing nets net in areas with high water volume. The nets are then hooked to trawl door or towed behind two boats. Just like bottom trawling, Mid-water trawling leads to capture of high numbers of non-target species. Seining is another fishing methodology that leads to large numbers of bycatch. Purse seining is used to capture fish species such as tuna. Seining involves use of nets commonly known as purse seine. However, the method leads to large bycatch particularly of dolphins that are frequently found near tuna. Long lining involves sinking long fishing lines, Bout 50 miles in length, threaded with baited hooks. The line with the hooks is then hauled behind a boat or left afloat overnight. This method is mainly used to capture fish species such as swordfish, as well as yellowfin tuna. This method leads to bycatch since other species of aquatic life such as sea birds and turtles are attracted by the baits. These untargeted organisms end up being trapped. The hooked bycatch cannot be rescued since most drown while others end up bleeding to death (Rigney 12-20). 4. Use an example from the book to explain how overfishing can lead to ecological damage and fishery collapse.  A good example of overfishing can lead to ecological damage is in New England where poor management of snow fishery led to ecological damages and collapse of snow fishery in the mid-coast Maine. The fishermen in mid-coast Maine can no longer use fishing methods such as harpooning and have to rely on long lining which is quite destructive due to the large number of resultant bycatch. On the contrary, harpooning is advantageous in that any untargeted fish or other organism captured is released. Had the New England managed its snowfishing activities appropriately, there would still be adequate numbers of fishes. The Rigney claims that everywhere he went, he witnessed instances of corporations that had taken possession of different regions of the ocean, manipulated it by overfishing before deserting it for greener pastures. This is a depiction of how overfishing can be damaging (Rigney 24-38). 5. How well does In Pursuit of Giants address things that you, personally, care about and consider important to the world?  In pursuit of Giants is an outstanding book that addresses environment issues satisfyingly particularly those pertaining to aquatic life. One of the issues that is important to me and has been addressed by Rigney is on wildlife management. It is disappointing to see the people who are supposed to protect aquatic life destroy it. Another aspect is the little efforts that governments put in preserving aquatic life. It is shocking to observe fishing corporations destroy their own source of income and livelihood (Rigney 23-28, 44-54). Just as Rigney argues, it is pathetic to watch people destroy thousands of juvenile fish in a single fishing event while they expect to depend on the same activity for their entire life. Governments such as the New England have benefitted greatly from the fishing industry and are yet doing very little to protect wild life. If the affected governments do not act urgently to protect the endangered aquatic species, the future of the fishing industry will be ruined. Ocean organisms are being depleted rapidly more than they can replace themselves. I find it disturbing that research institutes are putting little effort in finding less destructive fishing methods. As much as the research institutions worldwide agree that most of current fishing methods are disparaging, they have shown little efforts in inventing better ones (Rigney 50-58). Another of the aspect described in “In Pursuit of Giants” that distresses me is the harsh fate that see animals have to suffer in the hands of anglers. The cold-hearted slaughter of captured fish on the deck after terrifying voyage from the see bottom demonstrates cruelty. It would be wise to kill the fish instantly other than using ice to freeze and suffocate them (Rigney 144-172). Works Cited Rigney, Matt. In Pursuit of Giants: One Man's Global Search for the Last of the Great Fish. New York: Viking Books, 2012.Print. Read More