Fate of bigeye tuna in the balance in quota meet

Yahoo – AFP, Laure FILLON, November 18, 2019

More than 50 fishing nations meet this week in Majorca to try and agree
quotas for the under-pressure bigeye tuna (AFP Photo/JOHN WESSELS)

Paris (AFP) - The fate of big-eye tuna, over-fished and in decline, could be decided this week when fishing nations meet to set quotas after failing last year to agree on safeguard measures for the valuable food resource.

Scientists warn that unless the catch is reduced, stocks of Thunnus obesus -- prized for sashimi in Japan and canned worldwide -- could collapse within years.

A scientific report prepared for last year's meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) showed that numbers had plummeted to less than 20 percent of historic levels.

This was only about half what is needed to support a "maximum sustainable yield" -- the largest catch that can be taken without compromising the long-term stability of a species.

ICCAT, which groups more than 50 parties including the European Union, convenes in Majorca, Spain, on Monday for another review of the situation in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, having failed last year to agree quotas or how to include all members in the system.

Previously, ICCAT has a headline quota of 65,000 tonnes, but in practice the catch was nearer to 80,000 tonnes, well into the danger zone, according to NGOs.

The EU on Monday proposed a quota of 62,500 tonnes through to 2022 which would include 17 countries currently catching more than 1,250 tonnes a year.

Ivory Coast, Gabon, Ghana and Guinea Bissau, meanwhile, back a quota of 57,500 to 60,000 tonnes, while the Latin American states of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama and Mexico are pressing for no change.

Quota key to recovery

For the Pew Charitable Trusts, "a quota of 60,000 tonnes would be too high," fisheries expert Grantly Galland told AFP, suggesting 50,000 tonnes instead.

A quota of 60,000 tonnes would make the stock recovery period "too long," Galland said.

Some experts have calculated that cutting the total catch to 50,000 tonnes per year would give bigeye tuna a 70 percent chance of recovery by 2028.

ICCAT will also be looking at other species at risk -- albacore tuna and sharks.

For albacore, it suggests a quota of 110,000 tonnes from 2020.

For its part, the World Wide Fund for Nature recommends that no-go zones be established for certain periods so as to reduce the number of juvenile tuna caught.

The International Pole and Line Foundation (IPNLF), which promotes artisanal line fishing for tuna, wants the meeting to take on board the special concerns of developing coastal countries.

As for sharks, which have suffered massive human predation, Senegal is pushing for all shortfin mako sharks caught to be released, dead or alive.

The shortfin mako, also known as the blue pointer or bonito shark, is among the most at risk and is already protected under international trade by the wild fauna and flora CITES convention aimed at controlling trafficking in endangered species.

CITES votes to protect endangered mako sharks

Yahoo – AFP, Laure FILLON, August 25, 2019

Mako sharks are often targeted for their fins which are used in shark fin soup
(AFP Photo/Valery HACHE)

A proposal to strengthen protection for mako sharks, hunted for their meat and fins, was adopted Sunday by 102 countries at the CITES global wildlife trade summit.

Makos, the fastest shark species, have practically disappeared from the Mediterranean and their numbers have plunged in the Atlantic, Northern Pacific and Indian Oceans.

Mexico presented a proposal to list mako sharks under Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), meaning that they cannot be traded unless it can be shown that their fishing will not threaten their chances for survival.

Mako sharks are often targeted for their fins -- used in shark fin soup -- a status dish in Asian countries, notably China, which is often served at weddings.

"Fishing is the main threat being faced by sharks," said a delegate from the European Union, which backed the proposal.

Dried fish and shark fin on sale in a Hong Kong shop (AFP Photo/ANTHONY 

WALLACE)

"We need much stronger measures" than national initiatives to prevent overfishing, he said during a heated debate in Geneva.

Countries opposing the measure such as Japan and China argue that there is insufficient scientific data to show that mako sharks are declining as a result of their trade. Forty nations voted against the measure.

'Global momentum'

Delegates from more than 180 countries gathered in Geneva for 12 days also voted for the inclusion of a total of 18 species of rays and sharks in Appendix II.

"There is a real global momentum to save these species. There is now hope for these 18 depleted species of sharks and rays," said Megan O'Toole of the International Fund for the Protection of Animals (IFAW).

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) said in March 

that 17 species of rays and sharks face extinction (AFP Photo/Seyllou)

"There is now hope for these species," added Luke Warwick from the Wildlife Conservation Society.

The vote must still be finalised at the plenary session at the end, when all appendix change proposals passed in committee are officially adopted.

For the first time three species of sea cucumber -- also sought after by consumers in Asia -- were also listed in Appendix II, with a 12-month deadline for implementation.

The move was hailed by WWF's Colman O Criodain, who said the sea cucumbers, which are threatened by overfishing, play a crucial role in the health of ecosystems.

CITES can impose sanctions on countries which do not adhere to its rules. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) said in March that 17 species of rays and sharks face extinction.

Sharks appear to be getting an image makeover as countries move to restrict trade in several species of the oceans' top predator in a push to extend more protections to marine species https://t.co/YxwK3bRnwq pic.twitter.com/L2eo3XFF20

— AFP news agency (@AFP) 26 augustus 2019

Five shark species gain international protection

After years of government wrangling, five types of sharks have gained protected status under an international treaty. Although shark advocates welcome the decision, enforcement of the protections could be tricky.

Deutsche Welle, 15 Sep 2014

Steven Spielberg's Hollywood film "Jaws" painted the great white shark as a vicious monster, which in that movie attacked and killed four people in just a few days. But statistically, only around five people per year die as a result of a shark attacks. In most of those cases, the massive fish have confused people for its prey, like seals, while hunting.

And because it is threatened in many regions, the great white shark in 2004 gained protection under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), even though it is not commercially fished.

The conservation situation was not much better for the porbeagle, oceanic whitetip and three types of hammerhead. Overall, many shark species have declined by up to 90 percent. Nor has the manta ray been doing too well.

On Sunday (14.09.2014), these five sharks species and all manta rays were entered onto the CITES Appendix II list, which is meant to limit their international trade.

Heike Finke, a species protection expert at German conservation organization NABU, called the animals' decline "frightening." The sharks' troublesome conservation status may be traced back to intensive fishing, she said. But it also has to do with the sharks' lifecycle, she explained: "It sometimes takes up to 22 years for them to reach sexual maturity," Finke said.

Humans get attacked by sharks only typically when confused with prey

More endangered than tigers and snow leopards

If a marine species takes 20 years to reproduce, there is a high probability it will end up in a fishing net before it has the chance to produce young. This is one of the main reasons why the shark is declining.

While endangered species as tigers and snow leopards can be captive bred - including in zoos - sharks don't present that possibility, Finke thinks.

Sharks are not suitable for being held in aquariums, she explained. "If they disappear, then the species will be gone forever."

Shark-finning shame

In Germany and Europe, shark meat is made into steaks, Schillerlocke (a strip of smoked dogfish), or fish and chips. In China and Japan, a special delicacy is shark-fin soup.

Finke said sharks are more endangered
than tigers

This appetite for shark-fin soup has also been driving the species toward extinction. It's led to the especially wasteful practice of many fishermen cutting in particular the dorsal or top fins off the animals, and then throwing the rest of the body back overboard. Shark fins are compact and relatively easy to transport with minimal refrigeration, yet the meat must be kept cool.

Heike Finke called the practice outrageous. "It's perfectly good meat," she said of the rest of the animal. Sharks remain alive once the fins have been removed, she explained, but then they "suffocate slowly and horrifically over the course of several days."

Cartilage from the fin is used in China for medicinal purposes, as the folk belief is that it's effective against diseases such as cancer and Parkinson's.

Meanwhile, sharks' teeth and the gill rakers from manta rays are used in jewelry or sold as souvenirs.

Still little known about sharks

Despite their intimidating reputation, there's a lack of real scientific research about sharks. "It is difficult for us to observe the animals underwater," said Finke. She continued to explain how great white sharks have more recently been fitted with transmitters to gain insights into their habitat and mating behavior.

With hammerhead sharks, for example, it is known that pregnant females travel in groups. For several pregnant hammerheads to land in a fishing net then amounts to a blow for the species.

More knowledge about the animals will be essential in establishing no-fishing zones for sharks, for instance during the periods when they bear their live young. With the species' inscription onto the CITES list of protected species, it's possible to better control fishing.

Enforcement challenge for new protective status

The restrictions on commercial exploitation of the five species that came into force on Sunday follows European Union guidelines. The EU banned commercial capture of the dogfish and porbeagle in 2010.

If the protected sharks are fished and traded internationally, then the exporter theoretically has to show evidence that the fish came from an area where there was sufficient population.

Limiting shark-finning amounts to a tricky equation

Joachim Flasbarth, secretary of state of the German environmental ministry of, has campaigned vigorously for shark conservation. Flasbarth welcomed the decision to add the species to the CITES protection list, and told the German press agency dpa that the treaty has finally created an international venue for punishing violators.

Implementing shark protections could, however, be tricky. Although all countries that are party to CITES are obliged to enforce the protection through national law, most shark exploitation occurs in international waters on the high seas by industrial ships of often nebulous national origin. Shark finning also takes place in countries that haven't signed the treaty.

According to NABU, in the year 2000 more than 800,000 tons of sharks and manta rays were officially registered as being caught - this represents some 100 million sharks.

"How high the number of unreported cases is, one can only guess," Finke concluded.

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Kryon Q&A

Question (2002): Dear Kryon, A friend and I are meditating on the recent shark attacks and feel that it has to do with the planetary changes. We just can’t understand why they have become aggressive. What is the message the sharks are bringing? Why is this happening?
—Thank you,
Maryann

Answer: Indeed there are changes with the environment and also with biology regarding the 12-year grid change. I will first give you what was happening in general: What you are seeing are mammals, amphibians, insects, and even fish that are in areas that are new to them. Every life-form that migrates is effected by magnetics. All life forms that follows certain feeding scenarios and are “following the food” have the potential to be affected. This is due to the changing of the magnetic ley lines of the earth as we have stated before.

The areas where you can see in the ocean most clearly are within those migration patterns closest to the land. Where the ocean interfaces with the land, there are challenges for all these creatures for at least one of their generations. Whales will beach themselves by following old magnetics headings that now “drive” them into peninsula’s and other land areas that were marginally on the edge of their old paths. Birds, amphibians, and insects will be seen to do odd things for awhile.

So these shark fish may be in greater numbers in these coastal areas than in the past, but the increased aggressive behavior was actually something else: There was a tremendous “release” of energy due to the Sept. 11 event. Much like the energy of earthquakes and other earth movement, much of the environment “feels it” coming. We have spoken about how the Sept. 11 event was not a surprise to the earth. [See Lee’s article “Did Kryon give us hints”] So, some of the new actions of these fish were due to an actual energy buildup of coming events... of which you now understand.

If you are paying attention, therefore, you might ask, “Does this mean that Human consciousness issues affect the actual earth?” Yes they do! Finally you may begin to see how global consciousness is tied into the environment, and even to basic physics and reality. They are not separate, and never were. The indigenous knew it, and now the “modern” world is beginning to wonder.

Blessed is the Human Being who understands that what they think, do, and intend, actually drives the reality of the dirt of the planet!

Indonesia, India named as biggest shark catchers

Google – AFP, 30 July 2013

Carcasses of finless sharks are being unloaded in Benoa, on Indonesian

resort island of Bali, on February 25, 2013 (AFP/File, Sonny Tumbelaka)

PARIS — Indonesia and India on Tuesday were named as the world's biggest catchers of sharks in an EU-backed probe into implementing a new pact to protect seven threatened species of sharks and rays.

Indonesia and India account for more than a fifth of global shark catches, according to the wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC.

They head the list of 20 countries that together account for nearly 80 percent of total shark catch reported between 2002 and 2011.

The others, in descending order, are Spain, Taiwan, Argentina, Mexico, the United States, Malaysia, Pakistan, Brazil, Japan, France, New Zealand, Thailand, Portugal, Nigeria, Iran, Sri Lanka, South Korea and Yemen.

The report was requested by the EU's executive European Commission following the listing of seven species of sharks and rays by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in Bangkok last March.

Shark catchers (AFP Graphic)

The regulations will take effect in September 2014 to give countries time to determine what is a sustainable level of trade in these sharks and how their industries can adapt to it.

Shark numbers have been decimated by overfishing, caused in great part by a demand for shark fins in China.

The absence of this apex predator has a big knock-on effect on the main biodiversity chain. Some scientists believe that one of the consequences has been an explosion in jellyfish numbers.

TRAFFIC -- an alliance between green group WWF and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) -- said it had identified other countries that were major hubs for the trade in shark meat or shark parts.

A truckload of sharks is seen in Calcutta,

India, on May 19, 2005 (AFP/File,

Deshakalyan Chowdury)

They include Bangladesh, Maldives, Oman, Singapore, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates as exporters of shark fins, and Namibia, South Africa, Panama and Uruguay as exporters of shark meat.

The report also gave a red-flag warning about the need to unravel a trade as complex as it is lucrative.

Some of the species are specifically targeted by fishing operations, but others end up as accidental, but valuable, catch when trawlers are looking for tuna.

"Key to implementing the CITES regulations will be the establishment of chain-of-custody measures, to facilitate enforcement and verification that harvest is legal," said Victoria Mundy-Taylor, who co-wrote the report.

The CITES controls will cover the ocean whitetip shark, porbeagle shark, three species of hammerhead shark and two species of manta rays, which are all classified as endangered on the IUCN's Red List.

These species are all slow-growing, late to mature and produce few young, which make them highly vulnerable to overfishing. The decision in Bangkok moved them to Appendix II of CITES, which covers species that are threatened by trade or may become so without strict controls.

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Outrage over Hong Kong’s ‘Shark Fin Roottop'

Yahoo – AFP,  January 4, 2013

This photo, taken on January 2, 2013, shows shark fins drying in the sun

 on the roof of a factory building in Hong Kong. Local conservationists

 expressed outrage after images emerged, calling for curbs on the 'barbaric' 

trade. (AFP)

HONG KONG (AFP) - Hong Kong conservationists expressed outrage Thursday after images emerged of a factory rooftop covered in thousands of freshly sliced shark fins, as they called for curbs on the "barbaric" trade.

The southern Chinese city is one of the world's biggest markets for shark fins, which are used to make soup that is an expensive staple at Chinese banquets and viewed by many Asians as a rare delicacy.

Activist Gary Stokes who has visited the site estimated there are 15,000 to 20,000 fins being laid to dry on the rooftop on Hong Kong island ahead of an anticipated surge in demand over Lunar New Year in February this year.

"This is shocking," the Hong Kong coordinator for conservation group Sea Shepherd told AFP, saying it was the first time that he has spotted such a massive hoarding of shark fins in one place in the Asian financial hub.

"This is the most graphic, brutal and barbaric part of the industry -- the element of chopping a shark's fin off and throwing it back into the water is horrific and inhumane," he added.

Stokes believed the large amount of shark fins were destined for China, and that traders moved to dry the shark fins on secluded rooftops instead of sidewalks -- as they have done in the past -- to avoid public anger.

Campaigns against consuming shark fins have gained ground in Hong Kong in recent years, after major hotel chains decided to drop the soup from the menus, and home carrier Cathay Pacific said in September it would stop carrying unsustainable sourced shark products on its cargo flights.

"The demand in Hong Kong is definitely decreasing but unfortunately, the demand in China is growing," Stokes said.

"As long as there is no protection for the sharks, the (demand) will just keep going on and on," he added, urging Hong Kong authorities to ban the trade.

Environmentalists say the sustainable shark fin industry is tiny and most of the products are harvested in a way that threatens scores of shark species deemed vital for healthy oceans.

About 73 million sharks are killed every year, with Hong Kong importing about 10,000 tonnes annually for the past decade, according to environmental group WWF. Most of those fins are then exported to mainland China.

The number of threatened shark species has soared from 15 in 1996 to more than 180 in 2010, mainly due to the growing Chinese demand for fins.

It was not immediately clear who owns the thousands of unprocessed fins on the rooftop, which was unguarded when visited by an AFP journalist Thursday.

A spokeswoman from the government's conservation department told AFP that authorities could not act because the fins were on private property.

"This is a real disaster and it is just a tip of the iceberg," Silvy Pun, the Hong Kong director for US-based Shark Savers said.

She criticised the Hong Kong government for not acting to protect the dwindling shark population, after neighbouring Taiwan banned shark finning this year while China plans to stop serving the soup at official banquets.

"Hong Kong is a major shark fin capital, the government must do something. The government is being very laid-back and trying to avoid confrontation with the shark fin traders," Pun said.

Trade in shark fins is not regulated in Hong Kong except for three species -- basking shark, great white shark and whale shark -- where the trade is restricted under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), to which Hong Kong is a signatory.

A kilogram (two pounds) of premium dried fin can fetch up to HK$10,000 ($1,290) in Hong Kong, while a bowl of the soup sells for over HK$1,000.

A fisherman holds the dorsal fin of a hammerhead shark. 
Photograph: Jeff Rotman/Getty Images

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