April 06/2007 National Geographic Image
Illegal Catch
Hooked without a permit, a dorado—sold as mahi-mahi—was caught on an illegal longline off Mexico. With thousands of baited hooks, longlines extend for miles, often snaring fish unintentionally, notably sharks, as well as hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, marine mammals, and seabirds every year. In longline fishing, eventually discarded bycatch makes up nearly 30 percent of the take.
