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For generations, since time immemorial, the men and women of our coastal communities have earned a living from the harvest of the sea.

Species have come and gone with varying prolificacy and abundance, but our fishermen have always adapted to change with the cyclical and seasonal nature of the oceans and their toils over centuries have not only provided us with a steady and seemingly infinite source of wild protein, but have etched into our coastline the ports, villages, harbors, staves and beach scenes that so many of us willingly flock to.

And it continues, to a degree, but our fleets, a shadow of their former selves, even in a generation, are under ever-increasing threats to their very existence and, and by definition, ours likewise.

At the turn of the twentieth century, fifteen thousand souls were engaged in the herring fishery.

A species in such abundance, it merited its own marking, marketing board and processing infrastructure.

Such was the demand for the silver darlings, both home and abroad.

Where are we selling that octopus to?

Um, it's going all over the place, really.

I mean, a lot into continental Europe, um, to Mediterranean countries.

They have a, a great appetite for octopus, but I think also the, the Far East and the Middle East are seeing exports as well.

So it's great that we've got that.

And as, as I say, the, the price is, is holding up well, so fishermen are made-- able to make money and, um, replace their, their shellfish living with, with octopus.

But we just don't know how long it's gonna last.

What does this mean for the price of crab and lobster? Will that, that go shooting up then?

Well, that's the problem, isn't it? How long do you think it could take for the crustacean stock to regain levels that were there before the bloom? I mean, do the octopus have to move away completely for the crustacean to recover?

Well, they will really, yeah.

I mean, they only...

I mean, octopus are, are quite a short-lived species, you know, they only live about two years.

But once they, if they keep on breeding, and that population keeps replicating itself, well, of course, the octopus damage on the grounds will continue.

What we probably need is a harsh winter really just to break the cycle if you like, so that they're not able to breed and, and perpetuate their numbers, which will give the crab and lobster a chance.

But I mean, with- we're talking, you know, anything up to sort of seven, eight, nine, even 10 years to see crab and lobster stocks return to the, the sort of viable levels they were.

So what happens then to the fishermen who were used to catch crustacean and, okay, they might be getting a bit of octopus now, but what happens to them?