A recent study revealed that protected Mediterranean areas catch more endangered sharks than unprotected areas, underscoring the need for improved conservation of severely vulnerable species.
Ocean sharks and rays have decreased by an estimated 71% since 1970 as a result of the demand for their meat and fins.
Elasmobranchs are among the oldest marine species on Earth, but due to their slow growth and late maturation, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has classified one-third of them as being at risk of extinction.
True global catch figures are likely to be hugely underestimated as 90 per cent of the world’s fishing fleet is made up of small-scale boats, while dozens of nations have banned large-scale fishing of the critically endangered species.
For the study, researchers created a database including information on more than 1,200 small-scale fishing operations spread over 11 regions in Europe using photo-sampling and image processing.
Antonio Di Franco, a co-author of the study from the Sicily Marine Centre, ‘A lot of evidence supports the common belief that large-scale trawlers are having an adverse influence on biodiversity. Less research has been done on the effects of small-scale fishing, but our study demonstrates that there is a possibility.’
More than a third of the captures in the areas are endangered because the species prefers coastal waters.
While 517 elasmobranchs were caught compared with 358 in non-protected areas, the weight of shark, ray, or skate species caught in partially protected areas was roughly double that in non-protected areas.
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