With maasbanker prices at record high levels, the Namibian fishery was a marginal contributor to profit.
And that means the fish they are feeding on, described last week as anchovies and maasbanker - it's too early for sardines - are still hanging around.
While catches have declined in recent years, the maasbanker may yet prove to be underexploited.
The third is the one with the more extensive range, down to S. Africa, where it is called maasbanker because of its supposed resemblance to a freshwater fish of the River Maas in the Netherlands.