“It doesn’t take a big hole for them to get in – they go in snout first”
A huge bluefin tuna has been caught after breaking into a site operated by Norwegian salmon farmer Masoval in southern Norway.
The tuna was inside the pen for almost a day before it was taken out and euthanized.
“The incident was discovered quickly and divers were notified so they could plug the hole in the netpen,” Masoval Community Liaison Officer Berit Flamo told local media outlet Hitra-Froya.
“It was a giant beast, weighing 350 kilos,” Flamo said.
Tuna feed on crustaceans, squid and fish, including herring, pollock, cod and flounder.
“It was probably looking for food. It doesn’t take a big hole for it to get in as it goes with the pointed snout first, and then pushes in,” Flamo said.
Flamo praised the staff’s cool headed handling of the situation.
“The authorities were immediately notified, and the incident was handled according to the book. We checked aftewards, more carefully, whether there had been any escapes, but we believe the situation is under control.”
Bluefin tuna are the largest of the tuna species. The fish can reach a length of more than three meters and a weight of more than 600 kilos. They are extremely fast swimmers with a top speed, according to Wikipedia, of up to 100 kilometres per hour. They are easily capable of torpedoing a farming net.
