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1. It is estimated that in 2003, stocks were overfished by 40 per cent of the legal catch.
2. Patagonian toothfish are fished using longlines, which endanger populations of seabirds who get caught in the lines when diving for fish, including already-endangered species of albatross.
3. Patagonian toothfish live in sensitive deep-water habitats, which represent the last refuge for many commercial species. Bottom trawling for Chilean sea bass results in 11-26 per cent of catches thrown back into the sea. This percentage includes bycatch of other species and even Chilean sea bass that has a “jellied meat” condition
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Patagonian toothfish live between 50 and 3850 metres below sea level.
This species is long-living (40 years) and late-maturing (9 to10 years) causing it to be inherently vulnerable to overexploitation.
Patagonian toothfish can grow to be 2.15 metres long and can weigh up to 9.6 kilograms.
Young toothfish feed on krill and shift to fish, shrimp and cephalopods by the time they reach adulthood.
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