User:Kyragrace21/Marine conservation

Marine mammals
Baleen whales were predominantly hunted from 1600 through the mid-1900s, and were nearing extinction when a global ban on commercial whaling was put into effect in 1986 by the IWC (International Whaling Convention). The Atlantic gray whale, last sighted in 1740, is now extinct due to European and Native American Whaling. Since the 1960s the global population of monk seals has been rapidly declining. The Hawaiian and Mediterranean monk seals are considered to be one of the most endangered marine mammals on the planet, according to the NOAA. The last sighting of the Caribbean monk seal was in 1952, and it has now been confirmed extinct by the NOAA. The vaquita porpoise, discovered in 1958, has become the most endangered marine species. Over half the population has disappeared since 2012, leaving 100 left in 2014. The vaquita frequently drowns in fishing nets, which are used illegally in marine protected areas off the Gulf of Mexico.

Sea turtles
In 2004, the Marine Turtle Specialist Group (MTSG), from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), ran an assessment which determined that green turtles were globally endangered. Population decline in ocean basins is indicated through data collected by the MTSG that analyzes abundance and historical information on the species. This data examined the global population of green turtles at 32 nesting sites, and determined that over the last 100–150 years there has been a 48–65 percent decrease in the number of mature nesting females. The Kemp's ridley sea turtle population fell in 1947 when 33,000 nests, which accounted for 80 percent of the population, were collected and sold by villagers in Racho Nuevo, Mexico. In the early 1960s only 5,000 individuals were left, and between 1978 and 1991, 200 Kemp's Ridley Turtles nested annually. In 2015, the World Wildlife Fund and National Geographic Magazine named the Kemp's ridley the most endangered sea turtle in the world, with 1000 females nesting annually.

Fish
In 2014, the IUCN moved the Pacific bluefin tuna from "least concerned" to "vulnerable" on a scale that represents level of extinction risk. The Pacific bluefin tuna is targeted by the fishing industry mainly for its use in sushi. A stock assessment released in 2013 by the International Scientific Committee for Tuna and Tuna-Like Species in the North Pacific Ocean (ISC) shows that the Pacific bluefin tuna population dropped by 96 percent in the Pacific Ocean. According to the ISC assessment, 90 percent of the Pacific bluefin tuna caught are juveniles that have not reproduced.

Between 2011 and 2014, the European eel, Japanese eel, and American eel were put on the IUCN red list of endangered species. In 2015, the Environmental Agency concluded that the number of European eels has declined by 95 percent since 1990. An Environmental Agency officer, Andy Don, who has been researching eels for the past 20 years, said, "There is no doubt that there is a crisis. People have been reporting catching a kilo of glass eels this year when they would expect to catch 40 kilos. We have got to do something."

Marine plants
Johnson's seagrass, a food source for the endangered green sea turtle, is the scarcest species in its genus. It reproduces asexually, which limits its ability to populate and colonize habitats. This seagrass is the only marine plant to be listed under the Endangered Species Act, and in 1998, it was granted protection as an endangered species. Data on this species is limited, but it is known that since the 1970s there has been a 50 percent decrease in abundance. There are many reasons behind the decline in the seagrass's proliferation, such as degradation of water quality, careless boating activities, anchoring. In addition to that hurricane activity caused by climate change, increase the risk of extinction of the Johnson's seagrass.