Two-thirds of sharks in global fin trade at risk of extinction

Researchers say coastal sharks could benefit from increased protections, international trade regulations

MIAMI, July 19, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 70 percent of species that end up in the global shark fin trade are at risk of extinction — and sharks living closer to our coastlines might be of greatest conservation concern, according to new research.

A team of international scientists from the U.S. and China sampled 9,820 fin trimmings from markets in Hong Kong — one of the largest shark fin trade hubs in the world. With a little DNA detective work, they unraveled the mystery of which fins belonged to what shark species. In total, they found 86 different species. Sixty-one of those, more than two-thirds, are threatened with extinction. The research was recently published in Conservation Letters.

"Overfishing is most likely the immediate cause of the declining trends we are seeing in shark and ray populations around the world," said Diego Cardeñosa Florida International University (FIU) postdoctoral researcher and the study's lead author. "The fact that we are finding so many species threatened with extinction in the global shark fin trade is a warning sign telling us that international trade might be a main driver of unsustainable fishing."

The study found the common species that end up in the fin trade are open ocean, or pelagic sharks, like the blue and silky sharks. However, the greatest number of species in the trade — and many of the most common — live in coastal areas, including blacktip, dusky, spinner and sandbar sharks. The researchers warn without management many of coastal species could become extinct. Three coastal species are already thought to be extinct — all in nations that did not regulate shark fishing.

One way to encourage better species management is to list them under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) — an international agreement seeks to protect animals and plants from overexploitation driven by international trade.

The 19^th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES will take place in November. This study will provide key evidence for the body's deliberations by bringing the plight of costal sharks to the attention of governments and showing only a small percentage of the overall trade in shark fins is currently regulated under the Convention.

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SOURCE Florida International University