Bluefin tuna pulled back from the brink — but Earth's wildlife still in steep decline

A large bluefin tuna caught off Yeongdeok-gun [Yeongdeok-gun]

"Too expensive to even think about … "

Bluefin tuna ranks as the most prized of all tuna species. Its fatty belly meat — toro — commands top prices as a premium sashimi and sushi ingredient, making it one of the most coveted fish in the world.

Yet for years, concerns mounted that bluefin tuna would become not merely expensive but effectively unobtainable — even for those willing to pay.

The reason was straightforward: indiscriminate overfishing with no thought for the future.

Pacific bluefin tuna populations once plunged to roughly 2 percent of pre-fishing estimated levels — a collapse severe enough to raise genuine fears of extinction.

Recently, however, an unexpected reversal has emerged. International management and conservation efforts have allowed populations to begin recovering.

This remarkable turnaround is not unique to bluefin tuna. Tigers, sea turtles, elephants and other species once feared to be heading toward extinction are also seeing their numbers grow or their status improve.

It is a signal that nature, even when badly damaged by human activity, can recover through human effort.

But there is no room for complacency. These recoveries represent changes in only some species and populations, while the overall condition of wildlife across the planet continues to deteriorate rapidly.

According to the 2026 Living Planet Report released by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) on Thursday, both Atlantic and Pacific bluefin tuna populations once declined sharply due to excessive fishing.

Large bluefin tuna caught in fixed-net fishing off Jumunjin Port in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, are unloaded from a vessel. [Yonhap]

Atlantic bluefin tuna populations fell by 80 percent through 2010, earning the species an "Endangered" classification. Pacific bluefin tuna plunged to roughly 2 percent of unfished levels, placing it in the "Vulnerable" category.

Both species had been pushed to the very edge.

Since then, the picture has changed. Countries reduced their catch quotas and strengthened monitoring. As a result, both Atlantic and Pacific bluefin tuna populations have recovered to the point where neither is considered overfished or a species of concern. A fish that once faced disappearance has been brought back through a change in human behavior.

Similar recoveries are unfolding on land. The global wild tiger population stood at roughly 3,200 in 2010. Last year, that figure climbed to about 5,700 — an increase of more than 70 percent in 15 years. Long-term conservation measures drove the rebound: national tiger recovery plans, expanded protected areas, dedicated ranger programs and cross-border crackdowns on illegal wildlife trafficking.

The green sea turtle has also seen a dramatic turnaround. Last year, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) downgraded the green sea turtle's Red List status from "Endangered" to "Least Concern" — the first time any sea turtle species has achieved that distinction. The change reflects 50 years of protection efforts centered on nesting sites across roughly 80 countries.

A tiger captured on camera. [WWF]

What WWF highlighted in this report is precisely this potential for recovery. Among the populations tracked by the Living Planet Index, half did not decline. Some 43 percent of all populations increased, while 7 percent remained stable.

WWF argues on that basis that biodiversity loss is not an inevitable outcome.

The overall picture, however, remains bleak. WWF analyzed 35,803 populations belonging to 5,790 vertebrate species — including mammals, birds, fish, amphibians and reptiles — and found that the average population size of monitored groups fell by 73.2 percent between 1970 and 2022.

A snow leopard cub captured on camera. [WWF website]

The Living Planet Index measures the average change in monitored wild animal populations relative to historical baselines. The fact that the overall index fell sharply even as roughly half of populations held steady or grew reflects a stark asymmetry: the populations that declined did so far more severely than those that increased.

In short, the losses outweighed the gains. Freshwater species fared worst — the Living Planet Index for freshwater biodiversity fell 85 percent over the same period. Terrestrial species declined 69 percent, and marine species 59 percent.

Elephants grazing in Tarangire National Park, Tanzania. [WWF]

The causes are multiple. The destruction and degradation of forests and wetlands where animals live was identified as the single greatest threat. Compounding that are overexploitation of natural resources, climate change, pollution, invasive species and disease — all pressing down on wildlife simultaneously.

Reviving a handful of species such as bluefin tuna or tigers, in other words, is not enough to reverse the planet-wide decline.

WWF identified the root causes as the current energy, food and financial systems. The way food is produced destroys habitats and drives excessive resource use. Burning coal, oil and gas for energy accelerates climate change.

Steam billows from the smokestacks of the Seo-Incheon Combined Cycle Power Plant in Seo-gu, Incheon. Photo by Lim Se-jun

The flow of money also works against nature. In 2023, activities with negative impacts on nature received about $7.3 trillion in funding, while spending on protecting or restoring nature amounted to only about $220 billion.

WWF says even large, complex socioeconomic systems can change. The key concept is the "positive tipping point." The term tipping point is typically used to describe how situations can deteriorate uncontrollably once a critical threshold is crossed — as with coral reef collapse or the degradation of the Amazon rainforest.

But the dynamic can run in the opposite direction as well. When shifts in policy, technology and markets accumulate beyond a certain level, change can gain its own momentum and accelerate faster than expected.

Signs of this dynamic are already visible in the energy sector. WWF assessed that the energy system has already passed a positive tipping point and entered a phase of accelerating change, with solar power now the cheapest new source of electricity generation in most countries.

In food and agriculture, momentum is building toward production methods that do not damage nature, sustainable consumption, healthier and more sustainable diets, and reducing food loss and waste. The financial sector remains at an early stage. WWF said what is needed is a shift that reduces the flow of capital toward industries and activities that harm nature, and that treats nature and climate risks as genuine financial risks.

Volunteers take part in the first restoration activity for "Conserving ecologically valuable forests" in Madre de Dios, Peru, in November 2023. [WWF]

The critical question is speed. The international community has set a target under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework to halt biodiversity loss and put nature on a path to recovery by 2030.

The 17th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP17) opens in Yerevan, Armenia, on Oct. 19. WWF said the meeting must serve as an opportunity to translate already-agreed targets into concrete policies and investment.

"Time is running out for a better future, but the opportunity still exists," said Daudi Sumba, chief conservation officer at WWF International. "Transforming complex systems at the speed and scale needed is not easy, but if we can create positive tipping points, change can happen faster than we expect."

Park Min-hye, secretary-general of WWF-Korea, said the report "shows that nature is being damaged rapidly, but also offers hope that our efforts can change that trajectory," adding that "to turn that hope into reality, countries must follow through on their commitments with concrete action."

Meanwhile, WWF-Korea will hold the "WWF Living Planet Campaign" at the National Science Museum in Gwacheon from Thursday through Sunday to coincide with the report's release. The event will feature an exhibition introducing the report's key findings, a biodiversity campaign booth, and an outdoor display of about 100 giant panda plush figures — the symbol of WWF.

woo@heraldcorp.com