The IUCN/SSC Shark Specialist Group
Shark News 9: June 1997
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Status of Shark Conservation and Fisheries in Hawaii
Chris Lowe and Brad Wetherbee, University of Hawaii, USA
Although there are no commercial shark fisheries in Hawaii, there has
been intermittent fishing pressure on shark populations here for the
past 40 years. In the past sharks were caught and killed in an attempt
to reduce the risk of shark attack in Hawaii, but more recently large
numbers of sharks have been taken as bycatch in tuna and billfish
longline fisheries.
Shark fins on sale in Hong Kong markets. Photo: Brad Wetherbee.
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In response to concern for public safety, shark fishing was
conducted systematically around the populated Hawaiian Islands
between 1959 and 1976. During a total of six shark control programmes,
nearly 5,000 sharks were removed from nearshore waters at a cost of
over US $300,000. Following two fatal shark attacks, there were calls
for reinstatement of shark fishing, and the state legislature considered
a bill allocating $200,000 for shark eradication. However, evaluation
of previous shark control programs indicated that shark fishing had no
measurable effect on the risk of shark attack. These findings, coupled
with cultural and ecological concerns about large-scale shark control,
convinced legislators to appropriate funds for shark research and
public education. Data collected during the resulting research
programmes has provided the state with valuable scientific information
upon which to base future public safety protocol. Because of the
cultural and environmental concerns, the high cost of fishing, and
improved understanding of shark behaviour, large-scale shark control
is unlikely to occur again in Hawaii. This case provides a good
example of how scientific data and public education on conservation
issues can impact legislative decisions (Wetherbee et al. 1994).
The newest challenge in shark conservation may lie offshore. The
recent development of offshore tuna and swordfish longline fisheries
in Hawaii has resulted in a high shark bycatch, particularly for blue
sharks. Unfortunately, at this point it is difficult to assess the impacts
of these fisheries on shark populations. The only sources of data on the
number of sharks taken are logbooks kept by the fishermen and reports
of fisheries observers. In 1990, the National Marine Fisheries Service
(NMFS) implemented the Federal logbook system for domestic
longliners operating in the western Pacific. This programme was
primarily designed for reporting interactions of longliners with
endangered or threatened marine species. As such, the accuracy of
the data collected on sharks caught in the Hawaii longline fishery is
questionable. Logbooks, which are supposed to be filled out by boat
captains during sets, are frequently not completed until after boats
have returned to port. Therefore, the number of sharks caught is often
only estimated. Observer data suggests that logbooks under-report
shark catches by about 15%, which is considered low, but observers
only monitor about 5% of the Hawaii fishing fleet. According to the
1995 NMFS logbook data, 70,000 sharks were taken as bycatch, and
33,300 were reported as landed. Only 3,300 of these were landed as
whole carcasses while 30,000 of the sharks reported as being landed
were finned and their carcasses discarded at sea. These data indicate
that 43% of the sharks caught were finned (Western Pacific Regional
Fisheries Council 1995).
Most of the sharks captured in the Hawaii fisheries are utilised for
their fins. There has been a tremendous increase in the demand for
shark fins world-wide for use in shark fin soup, and fins have achieved
the highest value of any shark product to date. Imports of shark fins in
Asian markets have increased by over 100% over the last 15 years.
Hong Kong lies at the hub of the shark fin trade, followed distantly
by Singapore and Taiwan. The Hong Kong market is supplied
primarily by Japanese fisheries, of which many (such as tuna and
billfish fisheries) are centred in the Pacific Ocean, including
Hawaii (Rose 1996). Thus, Hawaii may be a bottleneck for the flow
of fins to Asia, and Honolulu is likely one of the few US ports where
this trade may be monitored. It has been estimated that as much as
$12 million worth of shark fins pass through Hawaii on their way to
Asia each year (Swenson 1996). Unfortunately, there are few data on
how many sharks are taken in Hawaii waters, the species composition
of the fishery, and how fishing impacts shark populations.
Since there is currently no fisheries management plan for sharks
in the Pacific, there are no restrictions on shark finning in any Hawaii
fisheries. Although it is thought that many species of pelagic sharks are
less susceptible to localised overfishing because of their cosmopolitan
distribution, increased global fishing pressure may impact sharks
populations on a large scale.
Development of a shark fisheries management plan for the Pacific
and increased public education may be the best tools available for
protecting shark populations from overfishing. More reliable landing
data and improved understanding of the biology of the sharks caught
are essential requirements for making reasonable management
decisions regarding shark fisheries in Hawaii and elsewhere in the
Pacific. Finally, better educated consumers can be very effective in
reducing market demand for sharks in unstable fisheries, and for
pressuring government agencies such as NMFS and the Western
Fisheries Management Council to take appropriate steps to ensure that
shark populations are not overfished.
References
Rose, D.A. 1996. An overview of world trade in sharks and other cartilaginous fishes. TRAFFIC International.
Swenson, E. 1996. Shark fight. National Fisherman. September 1996.
Wetherbee, B.M., Lowe, C.G., and Crow, G.L. 1994. History of shark control in Hawaii: with recommendations for future research. Pacific Science. 48(2): 95-115
Western Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Council. 1995. Honolulu HI. 1995 Annual Report.
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