30
T/16 Last Resource
hence other members of the food web ourish and the presence of
most up—wellings can be detected by areas of colder surface water
and an abundance of sh. Off the west coast of South America, the
cold mineral—rich Humboldt or Peru Current wells up as it moves
towards the equator. The shoals of anchovy which thrive on the
phytoplankton in the area of this up—welling support the largest
single—species shery in the world, and in 1967 Peru became the
rst nation to catch more than 10 million tons of sh, largely
anchovy, in a year. And even with this massive capture, enough sh
escape to provide more than adequate food for an estimated 25 to
50 million birds living in this region of the world. These birds breed
on arid rocky islands in the vicinity and their droppings, known as
guano, build up in sufcient quantities to form the basis of a fertilizer
industry. Many other famous shing grounds such as the Grand
Banks of the North—west Atlantic and Dogger Bank in the North Sea
owe their existence to permanent up-wellings and the mixing of
nutrient rich waters with depleted ones.
Some scientists have suggested that a more direct use of the
plankton should be possible. They point out that many of the animals
belonging to the zooplankton occur in concentrations suîciently
large to be commercially exploited. Krill, a prawn—like animal two
to three inches long, provides the major source of food for the blue
whale, the largest animal ever to inhabit the earth with specimens
reaching up to a hundred feet or more in length and weighing over
150 tons. If the swarms of krill can feed such huge creatures, they
must certainly be possible contenders as a new source of food for
man. These and other crustaceans are at least ve to ten times as
abundant as conventional marine resources. Russian experiments
show that krill can be caught in large numbers quite easily and
processed to produce animal feed. Between january and April, krill
form large shoals in the sub—surface waters of the Antarctic Ocean.
The Soviet trawler S.S
.
Knipoviz‘ch has reported catcheS of up
to
six tons for half—hour trawls. An even greater advance will be made
if ways of removing the horny body—shells and preventing rapid
decay of the esh can be found; with suitable presentation, the meat
which tastes like other shrimps and prawns should nd a ready sale.
Is it possible to conserve energy even further by harvesting the
primary producer? ‘Planktonburgers’ have been suggested. Un—
fortunately, the reports of people who have eaten plankton do not
rank them as a gastronomic delight and there is always the risk of a
T/16 Last Resource
hence other members of the food web ourish and the presence of
most up—wellings can be detected by areas of colder surface water
and an abundance of sh. Off the west coast of South America, the
cold mineral—rich Humboldt or Peru Current wells up as it moves
towards the equator. The shoals of anchovy which thrive on the
phytoplankton in the area of this up—welling support the largest
single—species shery in the world, and in 1967 Peru became the
rst nation to catch more than 10 million tons of sh, largely
anchovy, in a year. And even with this massive capture, enough sh
escape to provide more than adequate food for an estimated 25 to
50 million birds living in this region of the world. These birds breed
on arid rocky islands in the vicinity and their droppings, known as
guano, build up in sufcient quantities to form the basis of a fertilizer
industry. Many other famous shing grounds such as the Grand
Banks of the North—west Atlantic and Dogger Bank in the North Sea
owe their existence to permanent up-wellings and the mixing of
nutrient rich waters with depleted ones.
Some scientists have suggested that a more direct use of the
plankton should be possible. They point out that many of the animals
belonging to the zooplankton occur in concentrations suîciently
large to be commercially exploited. Krill, a prawn—like animal two
to three inches long, provides the major source of food for the blue
whale, the largest animal ever to inhabit the earth with specimens
reaching up to a hundred feet or more in length and weighing over
150 tons. If the swarms of krill can feed such huge creatures, they
must certainly be possible contenders as a new source of food for
man. These and other crustaceans are at least ve to ten times as
abundant as conventional marine resources. Russian experiments
show that krill can be caught in large numbers quite easily and
processed to produce animal feed. Between january and April, krill
form large shoals in the sub—surface waters of the Antarctic Ocean.
The Soviet trawler S.S
.
Knipoviz‘ch has reported catcheS of up
to
six tons for half—hour trawls. An even greater advance will be made
if ways of removing the horny body—shells and preventing rapid
decay of the esh can be found; with suitable presentation, the meat
which tastes like other shrimps and prawns should nd a ready sale.
Is it possible to conserve energy even further by harvesting the
primary producer? ‘Planktonburgers’ have been suggested. Un—
fortunately, the reports of people who have eaten plankton do not
rank them as a gastronomic delight and there is always the risk of a