Sri Lanka’s waters are home to 63 shark and 42 ray species, but many are threatened by overexploitation to feed the growing demand for shark fins, meat, and liver oil.
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Shark Booty: Save the sharks while you shop
Swiggity-swooty, I’m coming for that booty… and by “booty”, I mean “pirate’s treasure” because I respect everyone’s bodily autonomy. It’s Shark Week (again) and it’s the most magical time of the year for those of us in the Sharkophile community who collect – no, CRAVE – all of the glorious shark-themed swag.
Commercial fishing a world-wide threat to sharks
A new international study published in the journal Nature shows just how vulnerable migratory species of sharks are to commercial fishing when they swim into open water. According to the study by Flinders University, large sharks inhabiting the open ocean account for more than half of all identified shark catch globally in target fisheries or as […]
Study: Sharks become less nimble as they age
Just like old uncle Frank, several species of sharks tend to become slower and less agile as they age, a new study from Florida Atlantic University has found. In a a joint effort by FAU’s Charles E. Schmidt College of Science and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service, scientists examined cartilage mechanics […]
DNA testing the latest tool for fighting illegal shark fin trade
A multi-national research team has developed a rapid DNA identification method to help customs inspectors detect illegally traded wildlife products, beginning with sharks. The DNA testing protocol, published last month, detects nine of 12 commonly traded shark species quickly enough to enable officials to determine whether a shipment requires further inspection. The researchers focused on sharks because […]
Threatened sharks still make up large portion of illegal shark fin trade
A recent study, published in Conservation Letters, found that several threatened shark species are still common in the fin trade after being listed on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. The study’s lead author, Diego Cardeñosa, a Ph.D. student in the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS) at […]
Discovery Channel announces full Shark Week 2017 lineup
Discovery Channel announced its full slate of programming for this year’s Shark Week. The summertime ode to the ocean’s apex predator, now in its 29th season, will be broadcast simultaneously across the globe to over 220 countries. As well as the full schedule of programing on Discovery Channel’s flagship cable channels, this year’s Shark Week […]
Ireland’s basking sharks at risk of extinction
The International Union for the Conservation of Nature added 11 species of sharks and other elasmobranchs found off the coast of Ireland, including the massive basking shark, to its “Red List” of species that face an imminent threat of extinction. Basking sharks, which were once hunted to catastrophic levels because of their oily livers, are the […]