We all know that tonnes of abalone are harvested, mostly illegally, every year. But did you know that overfishing also has a direct impact on the numbers of wild abalone? Top predator fish eat juvenile rock lobster. When the large fish are removed by overfishing, rock lobsters multiply and move in from the west coast and eat all the sea urchins. Sea urchins are very important to juvenile abalone. They provide, amongst other things, a safe place for them under their spines. Without their protection the abalone get eaten by small fish and other predators and fewer reach maturity. To suggest topics of interest contact wcc@ocf.org.za