The Pew Charitable Trusts is driven by the power of knowledge to solve today's most challenging problems. Pew applies a rigorous, analytical approach to improve public policy, inform the public and stimulate civic life.
Sharks have roamed our oceans since before the time of dinosaurs, but their long reign at the top of the ocean food chain may be ending. Overfishing has decimated shark populations around the globe and numerous studies have documented significant declines.
Some shark populations along the eastern U.S. coast, such as scalloped hammerheads and dusky sharks, have plummeted by as much as 80 percent since the 1970s. Spiny dogfish populations off Europe’s Atlantic coast are at less than ten percent of their original size. Over the last 200 years, iconic species in the Mediterranean Sea such as the smooth hammerhead, shortfin mako, porbeagle, and thresher sharks have decreased by more than 97 percent in number and catch weight.
Shark-finning – the practice of catching a shark, slicing off its fins and then discarding the body at sea – takes a tremendous toll on shark populations. Up to 73 million sharks are killed annually to support the shark fin industry, valued for the Asian delicacy “shark fin soup.”
The loss of sharks, one of the apex predators in the marine environment, can and will cause drastic and irreversible changes. For example, scientists have found that declines in sharks can contribute to a shift from healthy, coral-dominated reefs to barren, algae-dominated reefs.
Protecting Sharks Globally
The Pacific Island nation of Palau declared its waters a shark sanctuary in September, 2009. The Indian Ocean Island nation of the Maldives declared their waters a shark sanctuary in March, 2010. Both countries have taken these steps because they recognize that healthy shark populations in their waters can help drive their economies and make their seas thrive. Pew is continuing to work with both governments and calling on other countries to establish more shark sanctuaries and marine reserves, where sharks can live and breed free from over-exploitation – and can help generate tourism income.
Protecting Sharks in the United States
Pew is working for passage of the U.S. Shark Conservation Act of 2009 (S.850/H.R.81), which would completely prohibit the removal of shark fins at sea, close loopholes in the current finning law and promote shark conservation in other countries. H.R. 81, introduced by Representative Madeline Bordallo (Guam), passed the House of Representatives unanimously in 2009. Senator John Kerry (D-MA) introduced the Senate version S.850 in 2009, which cleared the Senate Commerce Committee and is awaiting consideration by the full Senate.
Protecting Sharks on the High Seas
Sharks caught in high-seas fisheries are among the ocean’s most vulnerable animals. There are no limits on the number that can be caught and no rules on what fishing is allowed and what is not. Due to overfishing and low reproductive rates, more than half of the shark species caught in high-seas fisheries are threatened or near threatened with extinction according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
In the second half of 2010, Pew will work at the United Nations and at regional fisheries management organizations to set scientific limits on the number of sharks that can be caught. All fishing nations must adopt and implement shark management plans to ensure the recovery of depleted shark populations and the restoration of the critical role they play in the ocean environment.
To join the effort, and call on the world's leaders to take concrete and meaningful action to conserve sharks globally, please sign the petition.
Pew is a leading member of the Shark Alliance, a coalition of non-governmental organizations dedicated to restoring and conserving shark populations around the world. The coalition includes more than 90 member organizations from around the world concerned with the conservation of sharks. See www.sharkalliance.org for more information.
May 26, 2010 - The biological characteristics of sharks make them particularly vulnerable to overfishing. They grow slowly, become sexually mature relatively late and produce few offspring. This vulnerability is reflected in the large number of shark species that are considered to be threatened or endangered.
Read: Summary View: Full Report (Adobe PDF)
Oct 27, 2008 - Dr. Colin Simpfendorfer and the Lenfest Ocean Program convened an international expert working group to estimate the risk of overfishing for twelve pelagic, or open ocean, shark and ray species caught in Atlantic pelagic longline fisheries under the jurisdiction of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas.
Jun 11, 2008 - Study suggests the Mediterranean Sea may be losing large predatory sharks.
May 22, 2008 - Fishing spans all oceans and the impact on ocean predators such as sharks and rays is largely unknown. A lack of data and complicated jurisdictional issues present particular challenges for assessing and conserving high seas biodiversity.
Apr 01, 2008 - Recent studies document unprecedented declines in marine top predators that can initiate trophic cascades.
May 20, 2007 - Sharks are at the top of the marine food pyramid. Were they to disappear, the havoc to ocean ecosystems would be catastrophic. Article by Colin Woodard about the shark finning debate.
Read More
Stay updated with Pew News Now! We invite you to sign up to receive our weekly e-mail newsletter.
