Shark finning

Shark finning is the act of removing fins from sharks and discarding the rest of the shark back into the ocean. The sharks are often still alive when discarded, but without their fins. Unable to swim effectively, they sink to the bottom of the ocean and die of suffocation or are eaten by other predators. Shark finning at sea enables fishing vessels to increase profitability and increase the number of sharks harvested, as they must only store and transport the fins, by far the most profitable part of the shark; the shark meat is bulky to transport. Many countries have banned the practice or require the whole shark to be brought back to port before the removal of its fins. Shark finning increased since 1997 largely due to the increasing demand for shark fins for shark fin soup and traditional cures, particularly in China, Taiwan and Southeast Asia. Shark fin soup substitutes have lately also appeared on the market which do not require any shark fins. The International Union for Conservation of Nature's Shark Specialist Group say that shark finning is widespread, and that "the rapidly expanding and largely unregulated shark fin trade represents one of the most serious threats to shark populations worldwide". Estimates of the global value of the shark fin trade range from US$540 million to US$1.2 billion (2007). Shark fins are among the most expensive seafood products, commonly retailing at US$400 per kg. In the United States, where finning is prohibited, some buyers regard the whale shark and the basking shark as trophy species, and pay $10,000 to $20,000 for a fin. The regulated global catch of sharks reported to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has been stable in recent years at an annual average just over 500,000 tonnes. Additional unregulated and unreported catches are thought to be common. Shark finning has caused catastrophic harm to the marine ecosystem. Roughly 73 to 100 million sharks are killed each year by finning. A variety of shark species are threatened by shark finning, including the critically endangered scalloped hammerhead shark.

Process

Nearly every fin of a shark is targeted for harvest, as highlighted in the diagram. The primary and secondary dorsal fins are removed from the top of the shark, plus its pectoral fins, and, in a single cutting motion, the pelvic fin, anal fin, and bottom portion of its caudal fin, or tail. Because the rest of the shark has little value relative to that of its fins, sharks are sometimes finned while fishing vessels are still at sea, and the finless and often still-living shark is thrown back into the sea to free space aboard the vessel. In legal contexts the use of the term "shark finning" can refer specifically to this practice of removing the fins from live sharks and discarding the carcass while still at sea. For these legal purposes the removal of fins on land during catch processing is not necessarily considered to be shark finning. Shark species that are most commonly finned are:

Blacktip (Carcharhinus limbatus) Blue (Prionace glauca) (a species of requiem shark) Bull (Carcharhinus leucas) (a species of requiem shark) Hammerhead (family Sphyrnidae) Oceanic whitetip (Carcharhinus longimanus) (a species of requiem shark) Porbeagle (Lamna nasus) (a species of mackerel shark) Mako (Isurus oxyrinchus) (a species of mackerel shark) Sandbar (Carcharhinus plumbeus) (a species of requiem shark) Silky (Carcharhinus falciformis) (a species of requiem shark) Spinner (Carcharhinus brevipinna (a species of requiem shark) Thresher (family Alopiidae) Tiger (Galeocerdo cuvier) (a species of requiem shark) Great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) (a species of mackerel shark)

Impacts

On individual sharks

When sharks have been finned, they are likely to die from lack of oxygen because they are not able to move to filter the water through their gills, or are eaten by other fish that have found them defenseless at the bottom of the ocean. Studies suggest that 73 million sharks are finned each year, and scientists have noted that the numbers may be closer to the 100 million mark. The majority of shark species exhibit slow growth rates and low reproductive rates, and the rate of reproduction cannot keep pace with the current mortality rate.

On shark populations Some studies suggest 26 to 73 million sharks are harvested annually for fins. The annual median for the period from 1996 to 2000 was 38 million, which is nearly four times the number recorded by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, but considerably lower than the estimates of many conservationists. It has been reported that the global shark catch in 2012 was 100 million. Sharks have a K-selection life history, which means that they tend to grow slowly, reach maturity at a larger size and a later age, and have low reproductive rates. These traits make them especially vulnerable to overfishing methods, such as shark finning. Recent studies suggest changes in abundance of apex predators may have cascading impacts on a variety of ecological processes. Numbers of some shark species have dropped as much as 80% over the last 50 years. Some organizations claim that shark fishing or bycatch (the unintentional capture of species by other fisheries) is the reason for the decline in some species' populations, and that the market for fins has very little impact – bycatch accounts for an estimated 50% of all sharks taken. Others suggest that the market for shark fin soup is the main reason for the decline.

On other populations Sharks are apex predators and have extensive implications for marine systems and processes, particularly coral reefs. A report by WildAid on global threats to sharks further explains the importance of these animals. Fins from sawfish (Pristidae) "are highly favored in Asian markets and are some of the most valuable shark fins". Sawfishes are now protected under the highest protection level of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), Appendix I. Live Science said the following:

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