Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
Transferring bluefin tuna into the ship's tanks for the two-day
voyage to Tokyo Sea Life Park. (Photo courtesy John O'Sullivan)
ing net pens tied up alongside a narrow floating dock. While we
watched, a seagoing ship about two hundred feet in length pulled into
the harbor and tied up next to one of the tuna pens. It was one of sev-
eral ships built specifically to carry live fish to the Tokyo fish market,
but this time the Tokyo aquarium was chartering it to transport tuna
for their exhibit.
We were about to see how tuna were transferred from a grow-out
pen to the holding tanks of the ship. The ship's boom was swung out
over the floating dock; suspended from its steel cable was a large, smooth,
nylon-reinforced bag in the shape of a deep bucket. The water-filled
bag hung just above the floating walkway next to the tuna pen between
two fishermen. Each man held a stout pole fitted with a short nylon
line and barbless lure. Slapping the pole and lure on the water, the first
fisherman instantly had a tuna hooked; in one smooth motion he
hoisted the two-foot-long fish out of the water and into the suspended
bag. The hook flipped out of the tuna's mouth at about the same in-
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