Ocean sunfish are the world heaviest bony fish and are killed in enormous numbers as bycatch in drift gillnet and longline fisheries with no commercial value.
Ocean sunfish bycatch represents massive unnecessary mortality of a harmless species with no commercial purpose. Millions of sunfish are caught and killed annually in nets and on longlines without any attempt at live release. As large animals capable of experiencing stress and injury, their welfare during capture and death warrants attention proportional to the scale of mortality. Drift gillnet bans in some European waters have reduced sunfish bycatch substantially.