Sea pens are colonial marine cnidarians belonging to the order Pennatulacea, resembling old-fashioned quill pens anchored in soft ocean sediments. Unlike traditional fish, they are invertebrates related to corals and are not widely targeted for commercial fishing. However, sea pens are incidentally harvested as bycatch in trawl fisheries, particularly in countries with large bottom trawling industries such as China, Russia, Norway, and Canada. These nations, with extensive continental shelves and active demersal fisheries, often report sea pens among the benthic invertebrates caught unintentionally during the harvest of shrimp, groundfish, or other bottom-dwelling species. While not a primary target, sea pens are of ecological concern due to their role as habitat-forming species, and their incidental capture has led to conservation measures and bycatch reduction efforts in several countries.
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Data from FAO. 2025. Global Capture Production. In: Fisheries and Aquaculture.