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This is a repost from the Shark Safe Project. Click here to read the whole post for more information on the protest. What century are we in now that shark kill tournaments are still deemed as acceptable? We're not cavemen, why are such shows of "manliness" still condoned in civilized society. Shark Kill Tournament Protest Demonstration in Fort Myers Beach FL
Wednesday, May 6, 2009 Shark Safe is organizing a protest demonstration against the “Are You Man Enough Shark Challenge” in Fort Myers, Florida. This shark tournament is boasting “Bring Back the BIG ONE” shark kills. The tournament organizer Jack Donlon has been contacted by many shark conservationists and prominent shark researchers from the state of Florida in an attempt to discourage them from taking or killing sharks for the sole purpose of proving the “Manhood of the Fishermen”. Thus far, no adjustment to the rules has been made as Mr. Donlon has simply disregarded these pleas.
Shark Safe is opposed to all killing of sharks however we are EXTREMELY opposed to tournaments such as this abomination! Here are some unbiased and logical reasons, which have been presented to Mr. Donlon, why tournaments such as this one are so terrible for sharks:
- Most of the large sharks being targeted are on the IUCN list of endangered species.
- Populations of large shark species have been reduced by over 90% in the past 30 years (over 100 million sharks killed per year worldwide -- mostly for shark fin soup).
- 80-90% of all shark populations just in the Atlantic have been reduced to levels that scientist believe can never recover.
- As apex predators, sharks are absolutely vital to the ocean's ecosystem -- they maintain the balance in the oceans. Without sharks the oceans die.
- "Kill" shark tournaments promote the outdated and inaccurate image of sharks as vicious man killers that need to be killed.
In addition to these obvious problems, the current format of the tournament encourages killing of the largest and likely sexually mature sharks. And since each team is only allowed to bring in one dead shark to be weighed, it promotes catching and killing sharks such that at the end of the tournament, each team will only keep the biggest one to be weighed in, while discarding the rest of the sharks back into the water deceased.
Basking Sharks' Hiding Places Found
May 7, 2009 Emily Sohn, Discovery News For ages, scientists have wondered where basking sharks go in the wintertime. Now, they have an answer -- and it's full of surprises.
In the western Atlantic, the world's second largest fish swims all the way from New England to the Bahamas and across the equator to South America, a new study finds. Scientists have long thought that basking sharks spent all of their time in cooler waters. "This is equivalent to finding polar bears in Kansas," said lead researcher Greg Skomal, a marine biologist with Massachusetts Marine Fisheries in Martha's Vineyard. "This was a mind-blowing discovery for us."
"We've opened up a whole new world of implications into the life history and ecology of these fish and how they live," Skomal said. "To be able to do that in the 21st century for an animal that has been studied for eons is what fascinates me." The new findings may help people better protect basking sharks, said Robert Kenney, a biological oceanographer at the University of Rhode Island in Narragansett. The species is currently listed as threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. "If all of a sudden, you are finding that a population is spending part of its life somewhere that you didn't consider," Kenney said, "Then you have to expand what you think about when you are trying to manage them."
Great coverage by BBC News on whale shark tagging in the Maldives and the disturbing reality of the threats to whale shark populations. Tagging whale sharks in the Maldives
Tuesday, 5 May 2009 13:29 UK, BBC News
Whale sharks - Rhincodon typus - were first discovered in the 1800s and are found throughout the tropical oceans, but relatively little is known about their behaviour, how long they live, their breeding habits, or their migratory routes - or indeed whether they migrate.
Using software similar to fingerprint-matching technology, the snaps of the shark's spot patterns are compared to see if it has previously been photographed or is a new find. So far they have recorded 106 on the database, all but two of which are male.
Back on the boat, the team explain the sad story behind "Joey's" fin. He was first photographed by the group in 2007 in perfect health. Then, one night last year, they got a call from people on a local island saying that there was an injured whale shark floating in the island harbour. Arriving at the scene, Richard saw that it was Joey, who had suffered an unsuccessful finning attempt - his dorsal fin was very nearly severed, left hanging on by a small segment. "It was a terrible injury, we thought he probably wouldn't survive," Richard says. But in time the wound healed and Joey is still swimming around. A shark fin of this size can go for $10,000 (£6,600) in Taiwan or Hong Kong, and can be used as an eye-catching billboard outside a restaurant serving shark fin soup. Joey's story is sobering, despite our euphoria over being lucky enough to spot these incredible creatures. Luckily for them, the new Maldivian government is beginning to take shark welfare seriously and has introduced a reef shark hunting ban throughout the 26 atolls. Whale sharks are described as "vulnerable" on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List, with their population expected to decline by as much as 50% over the next century. But in truth, nobody knows how vulnerable they are, the true number of whale sharks in the world, or whether that number is in decline or increasing. Click here to watch the video on "Joey" from the post below. Woeful tale of maimed whale shark
Tuesday, 5 May 2009 13:29 UK, BBC News
Gaia Vince reports from the South Ari atoll in the Maldives on the successes and challenges of tagging whale sharks. Little is known about the breeding and migratory habits of the sharks, the world's largest fish. Here, Richard Rees and Adam Harman discuss the case of Joey, a whale shark that nearly lost its dorsal fin to hunters.
Seychelles Bans Cutting Sharks' Fins
01 May 2009, Blueflipperdiving
VICTORIA — The Seychelles has banned the cutting off of sharks' fins by foreign fishermen to curb a flourishing global trade that is threatening the survival of the sea predator and marine ecosystems.
The United Nations estimates that 100 million sharks are killed every year world-wide, mostly for their fins which are a delicacy in East Asia where a bowl of shark fin soup can command high prices.
Dozens of countries have banned the practice of slicing off of sharks' fins in the last few years. The Seychelles Fishing Authority (SFA) ban took effect this week and covers all foreign vessels fishing in the territorial waters of the Indian Ocean archipelago.
The ban does not include domestic vessels, which the government says are few and controlled, or shark fishing where the whole shark is caught. "Shark finning ... threatens ... the stability of marine ecosystems, sustainable traditional fisheries, food security, dive and eco-tourism," SFA said.
The World Conservation Union says 65 out of 373 known shark species are globally threatened, largely owing to the shark finning trade. Some experts think the number is higher. Fins from Hammerhead, Mako and Blue Sharks command the highest prices while cheaper shark fins are usually taken from smaller species.
Holiday makers help protect largest fish in the sea
May 1st, 2009, Thaindian News Sydney, May 1 (IANS) The world’s largest and rarest fish, the whale shark, may be increasing in number in one of its vital habitats, a new study by scientists and the general public has revealed.
The remarkable success of the online survey of whale sharks was carried out by Earthwatch volunteers, tourists, divers and researchers at Ningaloo, Western Australia. It has prompted scientists to issue a worldwide call to holiday makers and divers to join a global effort to monitor and protect the largest fish in the sea. Whale sharks are thought to be at risk.
“Besides showing that whale sharks can increase where they are well-protected, we have also demonstrated the power of citizen-science, that ordinary people around the world can make a real contribution to serious research and conservation,” said Brad Norman, project coordinator and founder of ECOCEAN whale shark project.
These are from my friend, Peter, who was lucky enough to see whale sharks 8 times on his trip to Donsol, Philippines this April. This wonder and majesty of seeing a whale shark in the wild can never be duplicated by keeping them in a tank, they belong to the ocean! www.whalesharkpetition.comWatch the whale shark videos he filmed here. Thanks for sharing Peter!       These are from my friend, Peter, who was lucky enough to see whale sharks 8 times on his trip to Donsol, Philippines this April. This wonder and majesty of seeing a whale shark in the wild can never be duplicated by keeping them in a tank, they belong to the ocean! www.whalesharkpetition.comWatch the whale shark videos he filmed here. Thanks for sharing Peter!
So retarded right. If we go to a buffet and we waste food we get charged a wastage fee; the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation needs to impose a similar fine to fishing wastage! This is so much worse and on such a huge scale that it cannot be overlooked or ignored anymore. Nearly half global fish catch is wasted
1 May 2009, OneWorld.net
Nearly half of the world’s recorded fish catch is unused according to a new scientific paper co-authored by WWF. It estimates that each year over 38 million tonnes of fish, taken from our oceans by fishing activities, is left un-managed or unused, and should be considered as bycatch.
Collateral damage: A dead shark is entangled in a fishing net off Tanzania in this undated file photo. COURTESY OF WWF
The WWF paper estimates the proportion of bycatch in 46 fishing countries (including the North-East Atlantic and Mediterranean & Black Sea areas) and two global fisheries; tuna and shark fin. In redefining bycatch as anything fishers take from our oceans that is ‘unused or un-managed’, the paper’s estimates go well beyond previous global estimates, which focus mainly on catch which is thrown away and vary from 7 to 27 million tonnes a year.
It is likely that the worst case of wasteful fishing is seen in fisheries that target sharks exclusively for their fins where 92 per cent of what is caught is discarded back in the ocean.
According to WWF, bycatch costs fishers time and money, contributing to overfishing, jeopardizing future revenue, livelihoods, and long-term food security. It’s also a major killer of marine wildlife, putting several species at risk of extinction and drastically altering the sensitive balance of ecosystems.
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