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.Schindler, D.E., Essington, T.E., Kitchell, J.F., Boggs, C. and Hilborn, R. (2002) "Sharks and tunas: fisheries impacts on predators with contrasting life histories". Ecological Applications, 12 (3): 735–748. Spiegel, J. (2000) "Even Jaws deserves to keep his fins: outlawing shark finning throughout global waters". Boston College International and Comparative Law Review, 24 (2): 409–438.Fowler, S., Séret, B. and Clarke, S. (2010) Shark fins in Europe: Implications for reforming the EU finning ban , IUCN Shark Specialist Group. 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.The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2014 Page 17 and 124, FAO, Rome. .
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.Fowler, S. & Seret, B. (2010). Shark fins in Europe: implications for reforming the EU finning Ban. (Plymouth and Burnaby, BC: European Elasmobranch Association and IUCN Shark Specialist Group)
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.BBC (UK) news item transmitted 5 March 2013
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:
"The overfishing of sharks [has] serious effects for the entire marine food chain in some ecosystems. [...] [A] study found that removing sharks from a reef environment in the Caribbean had a trickling effect on other species. Without sharks, carnivorous fish that the sharks usually fed on thrived. The carnivorous fish, in turn, preyed on parrotfish that kept the corals clean. In time, the reefs changed from one dominated by coral to one overrun by algae."Studies conducted by Creel and Christianson (2008) have shown that with a decreased population of large sharks, there was an increase in marine mammals and reptiles. This can cause a plummeting effect within the marine ecosystem; they're driven by both consumptive and non-consumptive behaviors. However, we are only starting to understand the role sharks play in the ecosystem and natural environments. Due to the difficulties of studying sharks in their natural habitats, a majority of the studies have been conducted in a model of the natural ecosystem (Ferretti et al., 2010).
Vulnerability of sharks On the IUCN Red List there are 39 species of elasmobranchs (sharks and rays) listed as threatened species (Critically Endangered, Endangered or Vulnerable). Sharks are an important part of the ocean ecosystem and are "an indicator for ocean health." Their role keeps the environment healthy because "they usually go after the sick, weak and slower fish populations." Due to shark overfishing in many areas in the world sharks are going missing or endangered.
In 2013, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) listed the vulnerability of sharks.
Appendix I, which lists animals that are threatened with extinction, lists Requiem sharks (i.e. Tiger Sharks, Bull Sharks, etc.) Hammerhead sharks Thresher sharks Basking sharks Mackerel sharks Eagle and mobulid rays Freshwater stingrays Whale sharks Sawfishes
Appendix II, which lists animals that are not necessarily now threatened with extinction but that may become so unless trade is closely controlled, lists Basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus) Great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) Whale shark (Rhincodon typus) A further five species are listed as of 2014 – Scalloped hammerhead (Sphyrna lewini) Great hammerhead shark (Sphyrna mokarran) Smooth hammerhead (Sphyrna zygaena) Porbeagle (Lamna nasus) Oceanic whitetip shark (Carcharhinus longimanus)
Opposition The crew of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society conservation vessel RV Ocean warrior witnessed and photographed industrial-scale finning within Costa Rica's Cocos Island National Park protected marine area. The practice is featured in the documentary Sharks: Stewards of the Reef, which contains footage from Western Australia and Central America. This documentary also examines shark finning's cultural, financial, and ecological impacts. Underwater photographer Richard Merritt witnessed finning of living sharks in Indonesia where he saw immobile finless sharks lying on the sea bed still alive below the fishing boat. Finning has been witnessed and filmed within a protected marine area in the Raja Ampat islands of Indonesia.
Animal welfare and animal rights groups vigorously oppose finning on moral grounds, as the practice gives sharks a large wound, causes them to slowly die of starvation or drowning, and because finning is one cause for the rapid decline of global shark populations.
According to Canadian journalist Geoffrey York, shark finning is sometimes linked to organized crime, including Chinese organized crime syndicates in South Africa, Fiji, and Hawaii.
Opponents also raise questions on the medical harm from the consumption of high levels of toxic mercury reportedly found in shark fins. a, A multi-disciplinary nonprofit 501(c)(3) scientific research organization says, "The reason indulging in this dish can be so harmful is because of bioaccumulation. Toxins concentrate in animals when they move up the food chain. Since sharks are some of the largest and longest-living species in the ocean, they have a high position on the food chain, so they consume huge amounts of toxins that have accumulated in their prey."Meliane, Imene (June 2003). "Shark Finning" (PDF). The World Conservation Union: 3. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
A third of fins imported to Hong Kong come from Europe. Spain is by far the largest supplier, providing between 2,000 and 5,000 metric tons a year. Norway supplies 39 metric tonnes, but Britain, France, Portugal, and Italy are also major suppliers. Hong Kong handles at least 50%, and possibly up to 80%, of the world trade in shark fin, with the major suppliers being Europe, Taiwan, Indonesia, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, United States, Yemen, India, Japan, and Mexico.