Ocean Planet Customized Tour: Page 8 of 13

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America's Top Ten§

Each year Americans eat billions of pounds of seafood--an average of 15 pounds (6.8 kg) per person. §


Catch of the Day

Choose any of the items from our menu to learn more about the seafood we eat

Steamed Lobster for two

Chilled Shrimp Cocktail

Mako Shark with Anchovy and Caper Sauce

Broiled Salmon with citrus

Swordfish with avocado relish

Fettucine with oysters and capers

Polenta Pizza with sardines

Sealegs and pasta salad

Tuna rice casserole

Red snapper with herbs


Redfish: Popularity Up, Population Down

Soaring public demand swiftly led to overfishing for the red drum, or redfish, in the 1980s. In U.S. waters alone, the commercial catch of adult redfish increased over 335 percent (10 million pounds) from 1983 to 1986. The resulting crisis led to emergency restrictions on catching redfish in the Gulf of Mexico in 1986. The stock has since begun to rebound. §

A dish too good for its own good It all began in 1984, when Chef Paul Prudhomme presented his now- famous recipe for blackened redfish. He intended to use tuna but at the last minute had to substitute red drum, or redfish. The dish became wildly popular, the price of redfish skyrocketed. Heavy fishing exhausted the supply of adult fish and was stopped by the federal government. §

Recipe for Blackened Redfish


More Information

Ocean Planet Exhibition Floorplan

gene carl feldman (gene@seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov) (301) 286-9428
Judith Gradwohl, Smithsonian Institution (Curator/Ocean Planet)