» Sharks



50% or more of shark and ray species in the Mediterranean now endangered

Mongabay.com reports, 6th December 2016: More than 50 percent of the sharks and rays native to the Mediterranean Sea are at a high risk of extinction, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) announced Monday. The major driver of their decline is over-fishing, researchers say. In the 2016 regional assessment of the Mediterranean Sea, […]

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Legal challenge in US to deep-sea mineral mining

The Centre for Biological Diversity reports, 13th May 2015: “The Centre for Biological Diversity has commenced a lawsuit which sues the U.S. government over its first-ever approval for large-scale deep-sea mining, a destructive project between Hawaii and Mexico that would damage important habitat for whales, sharks and sea turtles and wipe out seafloor ecosystems. The […]

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6 species of shark granted protection

Sea Shepherd reports, 12th November 2014: “Last weekend brought an important milestone for sharks. On Sunday, 9th November, 2014 several shark species were finally granted protection under the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS), administered by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The newly protected sharks include all three thresher […]

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Two-thirds of all predatory fish have disappeared during the last century

Mother Nature Network reports, 20th October 2014: “Once believed immutable due to their massive size and volume, today’s oceans are no longer the same oceans of our grandparents. In just a few generations, human activity has radically transformed ocean ecosystems. Case in point: Recent research has found that populations of predatory fish around the world […]

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Sharks at risk from acidifying oceans

The Ecologist reports, 12th October 2014: “Sharks are already in trouble everywhere. They are pursued as food or feared as a threat, and the habitat they favour is gradually being degraded or destroyed. Human emissions of carbon dioxide do more than just warm the global climate. They also acidify our seas and oceans. And sharks […]

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Evidence that sharks attack undersea fibre-optic cables, mistaking them for fish

The Guardian reports, 14th August 2014: “Google is going to great lengths to reinforce some of the world’s undersea data cables after a series of shark bites, a product manager has revealed. The fibre optic cables, which carry internet traffic around the world, are protected by a series of layers to protect against impact and […]

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Global Oceans Commission launches petition in support of its Report

A Global Ocean Commission press release, 3rd July 2014, states: “A week ago the Global Ocean Commission released its report and proposals for restoring ocean health. If you have not seen the report you can see it here. “As part of the Global Ocean Commission’s commitment to breathe life into its proposals it has started […]

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UK government says it will argue for “restraint on Atlantic shark fishing”

The Guardian reports, 2nd July 2014: “The UK government has pledged to fight the unlimited fishing that leads to millions of sharks being killed by EU boats in the Atlantic every year. Numerous species once widely fished by the EU, such as the porbeagle shark, have already been driven to near extinction in the Atlantic. […]

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Hunting for a “mermaid’s purse” will assist shark preservation

Members of the Co-operative in the UK are being recruited to take part in an egg hunt with a difference – looking for shark eggs on beaches. The Shark Trust’s “great egg case hunt” will see volunteers heading to the coast to search for the egg cases, known as “mermaid’s purses”, in which the young […]

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Prof. Callum Roberts outlines the urgent task the new Global Ocean Commission must tackle

Prof. Callum Roberts writes in The Observer, 10th February 2013: “The oceans are changing faster today and in more ways than at any time in human history. We are the cause. Which is why I welcome the launch of the Global Ocean Commission, dedicated to ending the neglect, in international affairs, of the high seas. […]

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EU recognises importance of total ban on shark fin trade

MEPs have voted to close loopholes that allowed some EU fishing vessels to continue “shark finning”. Although the EU banned removing shark fins at sea and discarding the body, special permits allowed finning to continue legally. Conservation groups, which say finning was threatening shark numbers, welcomed the European Parliament’s decision. The decision to back the […]

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1000s of shark fins drying on a Hong Kong rooftop are part of 75 million shark deaths annually

Shark fin traders in Hong Kong have laid out thousands of fins on rooftops in what appears to be a move to escape public scrutiny of their industry. Thousands of the freshly cut fins were seen blanketing the roof of an industrial building in Hong Kong. Environmental campaigner Gary Stokes, who took the first photos […]

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Man versus Sharks in Australia : the truce collapses

Australian officials, under pressure to protect beach-goers after a string of deadly shark attacks, have approved a plan to kill sharks that venture too close to people in the water. The plan, which was announced by Western Australia state premier, Colin Barnett, has infuriated conservationists and marks a sharp reversal of the current policy that […]

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EU Commission seeks a way to eliminate deep sea fishing

The European Commission wants to tighten its oversight of deep-sea habitat, proposing yesterday to phase out deep-sea trawling, reduce discards of unwanted fish, and implement scientific quotas for fishing. “If you want to take deep-sea fish, you have to do it in a sustainable manner,” says Oliver Drewes, a commission spokesperson for maritime affairs and […]

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