The most important commercial species caught in the Northeast are yellowfin, bigeye and bluefin tunas. The method used varies locally and among species. Pole and line fishing from baitboats is the technique used for over 40 percent of the world's catch. All three of these are among the methods used in the Northeast. In recent years, the consumption of tuna became an issue of conscience as well as taste, as attention has focused on tuna fishing-associated deaths of dolphins.
Yellowfins swim closely with several species of dolphin.
When the dolphins surface to breathe, fishing boats set their nets around both tuna and dolphin, sometimes drowning the dolphins. International efforts to cut dolphin kills during tuna seining reduced the number of dolphins killed from over 400,000 per year in the 1960s to 2,500 in 1996. Labelling changes took place in 1999. Bycatch Reduction Dolphins are not the only marine animals that have been harmed in the process of catching tuna. Other animals, such as whales, sharks and sea turtles, have been adversely affected by tuna and other pelagic fishing.