It’s the early 1900s: the second Industrial Revolution is in full swing, trains made travel easier, and guys like Theodore Roosevelt made the great outdoors cool. More people were fishing for sport and reeling in fish bigger than themselves.
The photo at right shows the world’s record Black Sea Bass (425 lbs.), caught at Catalina Island, California on, Aug. 26, 1903 (Credit: Library of Congress).
So why don’t we see or catch fish this big today? The answer isn’t always clear, but we know there is one possible reason: fewer big, old, fat, fertile, female fish.
Big, Old, Fat, Fertile, Female Fish
What’s in a name? Well in this case, quite a lot. Big, Old, Fat, Fertile, Female Fish (or BOFFFs for short) is an actual scientific term used to represent older, long-lived, matriarch fish that help sustain fish populations like rockfish, groupers, and snappers. Large female fish often produce more or higher quality offspring than smaller fish. In many egg-laying fish species, these large fish often are believed to have longer spawning seasons that lead to better spawning success. More eggs over a longer season equals more baby fish.
As fishing became more accessible and commercial fishing grew, populations of BOFFFs and other fish began to suffer. Simply put, fishermen were catching more and more fish, including those larger BOFFFs, and outpacing nature’s ability to replace them.
And soon, many species of fish were in danger of becoming overfished. This left fisheries managers with a question: how can healthy marine life populations and a robust fishing industry thrive together?
What Are Marine Protected Areas?
Enter one (of many) solutions: marine protected areas (MPAs). These are parts of the ocean where international, federal, state, or Tribal authorities grant protections ranging from closing an area for fishing entirely to restricting access or gear to protect specific species or habitat. MPAs provide safe havens for whales, sea turtles, sharks, tuna, seabirds, corals, and countless other species while preserving areas that are vital to expanding marine biodiversity and supporting healthy, resilient oceans and fisheries.
Most MPAs in U.S. waters still allow some fishing along with activities such as diving and boating. However, well-managed MPAs provide an opportunity for stronger fishing regulations and enforcement, along with measures to protect ocean ecosystems and biodiversity not often addressed through the Magnuson Stevens Fishery Management and Conservation Act, which governs fishery management in federal waters.
Research shows that providing places for marine life to reproduce, feed, and grow with less fishing pressure can contribute to overall biodiversity not only in that MPA, but also in surrounding areas. By protecting both fish and the habitats they depend on – from kelp forests and rocky reefs to seagrass beds and other essential nursery or spawning areas – MPAs allow more fish the chance to survive to older ages and larger sizes. Over time, this means more fish become BOFFFs.
And since fish don’t recognize human-drawn boundaries, some of these fish will swim into unprotected areas. Even some of the fertilized fish eggs and tiny larval fish end up drifting outside the area, pulled by ocean currents. This is what is known as the spillover effect. Fish may “spill over” into surrounding waters, which in some cases can make those waters more abundant. As a result, fishing boats, traps or lines may be seen near the edges of MPAs, particularly where spillover is believed to occur.
This brings us back to BOFFFs, which can thrive inside protected areas. One example is the bluefin trevally or ʻōmilu. These brightly colored fish frequent the waters of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument and the Rose Atoll Marine National Monument. Researchers have found that when female bluefin trevally are given the time to grow the largest females produced 84 times more eggs that the smaller females!
Despite the proven success of MPAs, the Trump administration announced its intent to open all five U.S. marine national monuments – a sizable and critical type of MPA established by presidential order under the federal Antiquities Act – to commercial fishing, reversing protections that have helped BOFFFs and other marine life by conserving these remarkable places.
Opening U.S. marine national monuments to commercial fishing means that many of the benefits they provide for protecting big, old and productive fish may be lost.
For nearly 120 years, conservation efforts have been strongly bipartisan. Presidents of both parties have used the Antiquities Act to protect America’s most significant natural and cultural treasures. In fact, President George W. Bush established four of the U.S.’s marine national monuments under the act, and this work continued under presidents Obama and Biden.
Now, the Trump administration is already dismantling those marine monuments by removing limitations on commercial fishing, and Congress is considering legislation that would undermine the Antiquities Act. This would make it far more difficult for future presidents to restore protections for these irreplaceable ocean ecosystems.
If we want those BOFFFs to return, and with them, the wealth of benefits the provide to our oceans, our fisheries, and ways of life, we must protect the places where they can thrive.
Join Oceana and help us protect our marine protected areas before it’s too late.
