The IUCN/SSC Shark Specialist Group
Shark News 3: March 1995
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World Wildlife Fund
The booming shark trade, which may claim as many as 100 million
sharks each year, has at last attracted international scrutiny.
When the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) met in Fort Lauderdale,
Florida, last November it decided for the first time to review this
huge but little-known trade.
CITES Parties agreed to help the CITES Animals Committee
gather information on shark trade and biological status before the
next CITES meeting in 1997. TRAFFIC, the international
wildlife trade monitoring programme of WWF and IUCN
has started a major investigation into the global shark
trade which will contribute to this review.
"The results of our investigation will help assess the
impact of the international shark trade and determine
necessary controls and conservation measures," said
Jorgen Thomsen, Director of TRAFFIC International.
WWF lobbied for CITES intervention, reflecting the fact that
sharks are not covered by international fisheries agreements. Trade
however is brisk, thanks largely to rising prices for shark fins from
the burgeoning Asian food market. Other markets exist for shark
cartilage, meat, liveroil and skin. Significant numbers of sharks are
also killed as a by-catch of other fisheries.
At present there is virtually no monitoring or regulation of
global shark fisheries and their impact on populations is unclear.
However, from the relatively little that is known about shark
biology, exploited species appear poorly-equipped to
adapt to current fishing techniques.
WWF UK is funing this issue of Shark News because
we believe that this newsletter provides an excellent
medium for information exchange on shark issues. We
consider this important for raising awareness of these
special species and their conservation.
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