Sylvia Earle

Sylvia Earle, often known as "Her Deepness," is a marine scientist, author, and former chief of the NOAA who holds the record for walking untethered on the sea floor at a lower depth than any other person. She has also been recognized by the Library of Congress as a Living Legend.

(Public domain image of Sylvia Earle by NOAA)

Amazon calls this book, "an enthusiastic celebration of that diversity and abundance. It's also a profoundly sobering account of the shortsighted human assault on ocean life." For me, one of the most sobering parts of the book was when Earle compared the food/energy required to make a pound of beef (20 lbs of plants consumed per pound of body weight for a year-old cow) vs. the food/energy required for a pound of bluefin tuna (thousands of pounds of fish that consumed thousands of pounds of smaller fish, which in turn consumed thousands of pounds of plants). It puts everything in perspective.

A fascinating read I recommend!

Seafood to Avoid

Sylvia Earle has worked to save oceans and to educate people about our impact on them. One of the many ways we affect the world's seas is overfishing and poor fishing practices. You can avoid contributing to this problem by avoiding certain types of seafood. The list below shows seafood to avoid because it has been overfished and/or fished or farmed in ways that harm other marine life or the environment. The data here comes from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood WATCH guide. You'll find more information, as well as a list of "good" seafood choices by visiting their site.

Seafood to Avoid

Caviar, Sturgeon (Imported)

Chilean Seabass

Cod, Atlantic

Conch, Queen

Corvina, Gulf (Gulf of California)

Crab, King (Imported)

Crayfish (Imported farmed)

Dogfish shark

Eel, Freshwater

Flounder, Soles (Atlantic)

Grenadier (U.S. Pacific)

Groupers (U.S. Atlantic, U.S. Gulf of Mexico)

Groupers (Main Hawaiian Islands)

Haddock (trawl-caught)

Hake, White

Halibut, Atlantic

Halibut, California (set gillnet)

Lobster, Spiny (Caribbean imported)

Mahi Mahi / Dolphinfish (Imported longline)

Marlin, Blue (Imported)

Marlin, Striped

Monkfish

Monkfish liver

Octopus (sushi)

Orange Roughy

Plaice, American

Pompano, Florida

Rockfish (trawl-caught)

Salmon (farmed)

Salmon Roe (farmed)

Sea Turtles

Sea Urchin (Maine)

Shark

Shrimp (Imported farmed)

Shrimp (Imported wild-caught)

Skates

Snapper, Pink (Main Hawaiian Islands)

Snapper, Red (U.S. Gulf of Mexico)

Snapper, Red (Imported)

Snapper, Red (Main Hawaiian Islands)

Snapper, Ruby (Main Hawaiian Islands)

Snapper, Vermilion (U.S.)

Spearfish, Shortbill (Imported)

Sturgeon (Imported wild-caught)

Swordfish (Imported)

Tilapia (China, Taiwan farmed)

Tilefish, Blueline (U.S. Gulf of Mexico, U.S. South Atlantic)

Tilefish, Golden (U.S. Gulf of Mexico, U.S. South Atlantic)

Totoaba (Gulf of California)

Trout, Lake (Lake Huron, Lake Michigan)

Tuna, Albacore (Worldwide except Hawaii longline)

Tuna, Bigeye (Worldwide except U.S. Atlantic longline)

Tuna, Bluefin

Tuna, Skipjack (Imported longline)

Tuna, Yellowfin (longline)

Yellowtail (Australia farmed)

Yellowtail (Japan farmed)

Fish near a coral reef

If you're interested in marine conservation, sustainable seas, saving coral reefs or anything related to our beautiful oceans, check out these other books by Her Deepness.

A simple click of your mouse can help save the oceans

If you're an ocean lover, Care2.com's Race for the Oceans is a site you'll want to visit and bookmark. It's a quick, easy way to help save our oceans.

Simply visit the site and click the "Click to Help" button. When you do, a donation will be generated for Oceana's ocean protection programs. Contributions are funded by advertisers who have agreed to pay for clicks in exchange for being featuring on the Race for the Oceans. 100% of the net revenues are donated to Oceana, a nonprofit organization working to save the world's oceans.

• Academy of Achievement - Sylvia Earle, Ph.D.
• National Geographic - Explorers in Residence: Sylvia Earle, Oceanographer
• The My Hero Project - Explorer Hero - Sylvia Earle
• About.com - Sylvia Earle Queen of the Deep
• Answers.com - Biography: Sylvia A. Earle
• Dive Global - Famous Divers: Sylvia Earle
• Literati.net - About the Author, Sylvia A. Earle
• CNN - Heroes for the Planet: Her Deepness
• Library of Congress - Living Legends: Sylvia Earle

If you buy something from this page, you'll automatically be making a donation to Earthjustice, formerly known as the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund, working to protect forests, wildlife, water, air, public lands, health, communitites, and international environmental concerns.

You're also helping this organization just by visiting this page, as visits, comments, and ratings help generate revenue for Earthjustice.