The IUCN/SSC Shark Specialist Group
Shark News 10: January 1998
|
Recent & upcoming publications
Great white sharks: the biology of Carcharodon carcharias
A.P. Klimley and D.G. Ainley (Editors), 1996.
Academic Press, San Diego, California. ISBN 0-12-415030-6.
This authoritative 500+ page compendium is the definitive work
on the great white shark. It contains contributions from almost 70
named authors from all over the world, many of whose papers
originated from talks given at the symposium on the biology of the
white shark which was held at the Bodega Marine Laboratory in
California, 1993. This volume has been well worth waiting for.
Detailed sections cover evolution, anatomy, physiology, behaviour,
ecology and distribution, population biology and, inevitably,
interaction with humans - the book concludes with a case study on
white shark conservation in California.
If you are at all interested in this species, then you should get hold
of a copy. I can only apologise for the length of time it has taken me
to provide these details in Shark News!
Collins guide to sharks and rays: the ultimate guide to underwater predators
Consultant editor Leighton R. Taylor. 1997.
Collins publishers, UK. ISBN 0 00 220104 6.
I was very disappointed not to receive a copy of this book for
Christmas, and have not been able to obtain a review elsewhere in
time to print! However, a quick look on the bookshop shelves and
reports from several readers indicate that this publication provides
an excellent popular account of all major families of sharks and rays,
backed by numerous colour photographs. The biology, evolution
and habitats of sharks and rays are also covered. Since Father
Christmas ignored my request, I will be heading off to the bookshop
myself to obtain a copy.
Sharks and rays of New Zealand
Geoffrey Cox and Malcolm Francis, 1997.
Canterbury University Press, New Zealand. ISBN 0-908812-60-4.
This guide introduces and describes all 95 of New Zealand's
sharks, rays and chimaeras, their evolution, behaviour and biology.
It also covers commercial and sports fishing (human attacks!), shark
attacks, sharks in history and in Maori and Pacific myths, and
conservation. The 68 page book is well-illustrated with numerous
watercolours of many species in their natural habitats. Copies are
NZ $25 each, plus packing and postage (dependent on destination).
For more information, contact M.P. Francis by email:
m.francis@niwa.cri.nz or fax: + (04) 386 0574.
le Requin
Published by Favre, le Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris. 1997. ISBN 2-8289-0524-1.
Selections (in French) of writings on sharks by Aristotle, Belon
and Verne, to Hemingway, Benchley and Bernard Séret, chosen and
introduced by Pascal Deynat. For more information contact Pascal
Deynat by fax: + (33) 1 4541 1763.
Ichthyological books
The specialist ichthyological bookseller and distributor, Steven
Simpson, has moved. His new address is: Steven Simpson Natural
History Books, Rising Sun, Kelsale, Saxmundham, IP17 2QY,
England. Fax: (+ 44) (0)1728 604555. Tel: (+ 44) (0)1728 604777.
Is deepwater a dead-end?
This is the title of a Greenpeace UK publication released in June
1997. Subtitled A policy review of the gold rush for 'ancient deepwater'
fish in the Atlantic Frontier, the report summarises the current state
of knowledge of the biology of deepwater fish species and growing
exploitation pressures on the deepwater stocks of the North Atlantic.
It explains that scientific knowledge of the biology of deepwater
species is so limited that stock depletion can take place long before
the data needed for fisheries management purposes become available.
However, as for elasmobranchs, our current knowledge of these
species is sufficient to demonstrate that they have a very different
biology to traditional commercial teleost fishes.
Deepwater species of teleosts are characterised by slow growth,
longevity and low reproductive capacity in comparison with coastal
species (although they are not as strongly K-selected as elasmobranchs).
As a result, their stocks will take a long time to recover when removed
by a fishery. The report suggests that the impacts of fishing these deep
sea populations may even effectively be irreversible.
Kite fin shark Dalatias licha (Bonnaterre, 1788). This deepwater dogfish has traditionally been targeted by deep-water directed fisheries, which rapidly decline when large quantities are taken. With the development of multi-species deep sea fisheries, stocks of this species are likely to come under increased pressure.
|
Deepwater trawling is associated with extremely high levels of
discard of non-commercial species, which will similarly be affected.
Deepwater long-lining leads to a high mortality of deepwater sharks,
which are even more vulnerable to the effects of exploitation than
deepwater teleosts. Many of the smaller sharks are discarded, often
unrecorded, sometimes after the removal of their oil-rich livers, and
many species cannot be identified by fishermen or even many
fisheries biologists. The report notes that these fisheries are completely
unregulated. Indeed, it suggests that they provide a welcome outlet
for the excess fishing capacity in the shallower water fisheries.
The final report to the UK Government of The House of Lords
Select Committee on Science and Technology on the subject of Fish
Stock Conservation and Management (1996) concluded: "Ideally, we
would recommend an interim suspension of all deep-sea fishing, but
we recognise that it could not at present be enforced." It seems
unlikely that the European Commission will address this issue or
adopt regulatory measures for deepsea fisheries in the foreseeable
future. Greenpeace therefore advocates that the UK government
should take unilateral measures to close deepwater fisheries within
the area of the Atlantic Frontier which lies within its Exclusive
Economic Zone.
Greenpeace UK, Canonbury Villas, London N1 2PN, fax: +44
(0)171 865 8200, and website:
http://www.greenpeace.org.uk
Song for the Blue Ocean
Carl Safina, 1997.
Shark Specialist Group member Carl Safina's new book is being
published by Henry Holt Co. and will be available by the time this
issue of Shark News is circulated (ISBN 0-8050-4671-2). Advance
reviews of his account of the plight of our oceans, its fisheries and
the people who rely on them are impressive. To place a credit card
order call Holt at + 1-800-288-2131, or contact your bookstore.
TRAFFIC Regional Trade Reviews
Two new TRAFFIC Network Trade Reviews, which formerly appeared
in Volume 1 of the Compendium of TRAFFIC's Regional Studies on the
World Trade in Sharks (1996), have now been published separately.
The trade in sharks and shark products in the Western Indian and
Southeast Atlantic Oceans. Editors Nina T. Marshall and Rob Barnett
(1997). Published by TRAFFIC East/Southern Africa, Nairobi, Kenya.
This well-presented and informative 130-page report contains an
overview chapter for the whole region, and separate accounts of
reviews carried out of fisheries and trade in the Seychelles, Eritrea,
the Somali shark fishery in the Gulf of Aden and Western Indian
Ocean, Kenyan waters, Mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar,
Mozambique, South Africa, and Madagascar. The regional study
commenced with a literature review and circulation of questionnaires
to the recreational and commercial fishing industries, government
officials, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), associations and
individuals. This was followed up by short term field consultancies
in a few countries, while other reports were compiled from desk
studies, questionnaire returns and correspondence with government
officials and NGOs. Each chapter includes sections on the historical
overview, current fisheries, trade, conservation implications,
regulatory/management frameworks, and ends with a section
providing conclusions and recommendations. It was impossible to
assess the situation in Angola, the Comoros, Djibouti, Mauritius,
Namibia and Sudan.
The trade in sharks and shark products in India: a preliminary survey.
Fahmeeda Hanfee (1997). Published by WWF-India (TRAFFIC-India).
The 50 page report, including appendices, is based on a review of
literature backed by survey of a number of selected east and west
coast sites, including all the major ports of India. This preliminary
study did not provide sufficient data for clear conclusions to be
drawn, but recommendations are made for more research and
data collection and new conservation and management initiatives.
Contact TRAFFIC International for details of how to obtain these
reports. Fax +44 1223 277237 or email:
traffic@wcmc.org.uk
IUCN Shark Specialist Group publications in preparation
Implications of biology for the conservation and management of sharks.
Compiled and edited by M. Camhi and S. Fowler.
This report, produced by the Shark Specialist Group for the CITES
Animals Committee meeting in September 1996, is now being revised
and updated. It will be published shortly in the IUCN Species Survival
Commission's Occasional Paper series. Original contributors are
asked to send their amendments and updates urgently to Sarah Fowler
or Merry Camhi.
Proceedings of the Darwin seminar and workshop on elasmobranch
biodiversity, conservation and management. Sabah, 7-10 July 1997.
The proceedings of this meeting are currently in preparation. In
addition to reporting on the results of the Darwin project, the volume
will include overviews of world and regional fisheries and trade,
reviews of the recreational importance of elasmobranchs, an assessment
of the regional biodiversity of chondrichthyan fishes, reviews of
national and local fisheries and markets in the Indo-Pacific/south-east
Asian region, descriptions of whale shark fisheries, freshwater
elasmobranch biodiversity, and management and conservation initiatives.
Information on how to obtain copies of both these reports will be
given in the next Shark News, or contact Sarah Fowler for details.
|
|
|
|
|
