physics

Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks

Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks rather than just read about it. In short: The Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks is an international instrument for the conservation of migratory species of sharks. It was founded under the auspices of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS; also known as the Bonn Convention).

Key takeaways

Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks is an international instrument for the conservation of migratory species of sharks. It was founded under the auspices of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS; also known as the Bonn Convention).

Background Many sharks are apex predators and keystone species, meaning that they are at the top of their food chain and play a crucial role in maintaining the health of marine environments. Sharks whose members cyclically and predictably move large distances are considered migratory and many pelagic (open ocean) shark species fall into this category. The IUCN considers one-third of all shark species as threatened or near threatened. For migratory sharks the situation is worse, with almost 50% being considered as threatened and 27% being considered as near threatened. Relatively little is known about the behavior of migratory sharks; researchers have been surprised by data on their migrations. Knowledge of 47% of sharks is too limited to determine a conservation status. Before the Migratory Shark MOU was developed, there were no international standards for the management of migratory sharks. Sharks that migrate can travel great distances in the world's oceans, with the whale shark being recorded on journeys of up to 22,000 kilometres (14,000 mi) long. These extensive migrations frequently and inevitably involve the crossing of national boundaries and through international waters; as the national regulations of coastal nations only apply to 200 nautical miles (370 km) of their coastlines, large parts of these journeys are consequently unregulated. The Migratory Shark MOU was the first global instrument published by the CMS, and the first one ever regarding sharks.

Objectives The MOU is aimed at facilitating international coordination for the protection, conservation and management of the sharks involved, through multilateral, intergovernmental discussion and scientific research. It is a global non-binding treaty aimed at improving "compliance and enforcement efforts" for states whose waters are inhabited by these sharks and to states whose flagships pass through international waters inhabited by these sharks. Signatories to this treaty intend to expand information sharing. The memorandum states:

The objective of this Memorandum of Understanding is to achieve and maintain a favourable conservation status for migratory sharks based on the best available scientific information, taking into account the socio-economic and other values of these species for the people of the Signatory States.

Species

For the purpose of the MOU, sharks include all species in the class Chondrichthyes, which cover sharks, rays, skates and chimaeras. Currently there are 29 species listed in Annex I of the MOU, although the annex may be edited following consensus obtained at a meeting of the memorandum's signatories. Currently listed:

Pelagic Thresher Shark (Alopias pelagicus) Bigeye Tresher Shark (Alopias superciliosus) Common Thresher Shark(Alopias vulpinus) Narrow Sawfish (Anoxypristis cuspidata) Silky Shark (Carcharhinus falciformis) Great White Shark (Carcharodon carcharias) Basking Shark (Cetorhinus maximus) Shortfin Mako Shark (Isurus oxyrinchus) Longfin Mako Shark (Isurus paucus) Porbeagle (Lamna nasus) Reef Manta Ray (Manta alfredi) Manta Ray (Manta birostris) Pygmy Manta Ray (Mobula eregoodootenkee) Lesser Devil Ray (Mobula hypostoma) Spinetail Mobula (Mobula japanica) Shortfin Devil Ray (Mobula kuhlii) Giant Devil Ray (Mobula mobular) Munk's Devil Ray (Mobula munkiana) Lesser Guinean Devil Ray (Mobula rochebrunei) Chilean Devil Ray (Mobula tarapacana) Bentfin Devil Ray (Mobula thurstoni) Dwarf Sawfish (Pristis clavata) Smalltooth Sawfish (Pristis pectinata) Largetooth Sawfish (Pristis pristis) Green Sawfish (Pristis zijsron) Whale shark (Rhincodon typus) Scalloped hammerhead shark (Sphyrna lewini) Great hammerhead shark (Sphyrna mokarran) Northern hemisphere populations of the Spiny Dogfish (Squalus acanthias)

Signatories

The MOU is a legally non-binding agreement that currently has 48 Signatories, including the European Union. The MOU goes into immediate effect for signatories. This Memorandum of Understanding is open for signature by the Range States and regional economic integration organizations of the shark species listed in Annex 1 of this Memorandum of Understanding. Range States are defined as any State that exercises jurisdiction over any part of the range of migratory sharks, or a State, flag vessels of which are engaged outside its national jurisdictional limits in taking, or which have the potential to take, migratory sharks. As the CMS Sharks MOU was concluded as a legally non-binding agreement, a formal ratification process on the national level is not necessary. About 40 national governments agreed to the original adoption of the MoU. Eleven of these signed it on 12 February 2010, although only 10 were needed. The original signatories were Congo, Costa Rica, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Palau, the Philippines, Senegal, Togo, and the United States. Nauru and Tuvalu signed on 9 September 2010. Australia signed on 4 February 2011. Sharks were already protected in Australian waters, but the government intends to work closely to distribute more information to other signatories. Chile signed on 6 May 2011. South Africa signed on 12 May 2011. In November 2011, the European Union signed on to the MOU along with the European nations of Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Monaco, Netherlands, and Romania. The United Kingdom signed in June 2012. Bermuda, the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, the British Indian Ocean Territory, and the Isle of Man, all dependencies of the United Kingdom, also signed the agreement. Vanuatu signed in February 2013. On 16 October 2013, Colombia became the 27th country to the sign the Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks. Sweden and Samoa signed the UNEP/CMS Sharks MOU respectively on 5 November 2014 in Quito and 7 November in Apia.

Meetings

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Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks

In research: Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2010 in the Philippines, 2010 in the environment, Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
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Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
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Frequently asked questions

What is Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks in simple terms?

Why does Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks.