Do we have to ADVERTISE eating endangered fish?

I've heard ads on the radio for the Bonefish Grill.   This guy is talking about how he and his friend are avoiding the mall crowds by having a great seafood dinner at the eatery.   The friend of the narrator has a salmon dish (salmon topped with spinach, bacon, and Gorgonzola cheese).  Not so bad.  But the narrator has Wolffish Rockefeller (wolffish topped with crabmeat).

This got me to wondering.  Is wolffish the same as wolf eel?  Turns out the answer to that is yes.  And I never thought there were so many wolffish or wolf eels in the oceans for this to be a sustainable seafood choice.  So I had to investigate further.

And it turns out my suspicions were right.

Status of Fishery Resources - Atlantic Wolffish

 Here's the first bad sign:

"Total USA commercial landings of Atlantic wolffish increased from 270 mt in 1970 to near 1,200 mt in 1983, but subsequently have continuously declined and reached a recent low of 118 mt in 2005."

 And here's the second:

"NEFSC spring and fall survey biomass indices of Atlantic wolffish indicate the resource is at an extremely, low level. Commercial landings are also at record lows."

 So thus I won't be ordering Wolffish Rockefeller at Bonefish Grill or any other seafood restaurant soon.  But it pains me that Bonefish Grill has to advertise a dish made from an apparently unsustainable (at least by the indications I can ascertain) fishery.

 More info:

Status review of Atlantic Wolffish (a PDF)

The Atlantic Wolffish - a species at risk in the north (from Canada)
 
Atlantic Wolffish - a depleted species that needs our help

And the other thing is;  they are so darned cute!