IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature

You can swim but you can’t hide – more oceanic sharks on the IUCN Red List

22 May 2008 | International news release

Bonn, Germany, May 22, 2008 (IUCN/Wiley-Blackwell) – The first study to determine the global status of 21 species of oceanic pelagic sharks and rays reveals that 11 of them are threatened with extinction, says IUCN on International Biodiversity Day.

Bonn, Germany, May 22, 2008 (IUCN/Wiley-Blackwell) – The first study to determine the global status of 21 species of oceanic pelagic sharks and rays reveals that 11 of them are threatened with extinction, says IUCN on International Biodiversity Day.

The international study, published in the latest edition of Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, shows serious overfishing is to blame and recommends key steps that governments can take to safeguard the sharks and rays.

Organized by the IUCN Shark Specialist Group (SSG), the study was conducted by 15 scientists from 13 different research institutes around the world, with additional contributions from scores of other SSG members.

The experts found that the sharks and rays, including the Thresher shark (Alopias vulpinus), the Silky shark (Carcharhinus falciformis) and the Shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus) are at risk of extinction due to targeted fishing for valuable fins and meat, as well as indirect bycatch in other fisheries. In most cases, these catches are unregulated and unsustainable.

“The traditional view of oceanic sharks and rays as fast and powerful too often leads to a misperception that they are resilient to fishing pressure,” says Sonja Fordham, co-author of the paper and Deputy Chair of the IUCN SSC Shark Specialist Group (SSG). “Despite mounting evidence of decline and increasing threats to these species, there are no international catch limits for oceanic sharks. Our research shows that action is urgently needed on a global level if these fisheries are to be sustainable.”

The increasing demand for the delicacy ‘shark fin soup’, driven by rapidly growing Asian economies, means that often the valuable shark fins are retained and the carcasses discarded. Frequently, discarded sharks and rays are not even recorded.

Sharks and rays are particularly vulnerable to overfishing due to their tendency to take many years to become sexually mature and have relatively few offspring.

“Fishery managers and regional, national and international officials have a real obligation to improve this situation,” says lead author Nicholas Dulvy, who is based at Simon Fraser University, Vancouver. “We are losing species at a rate 10 to 100 times greater than historic extinction rates. Humans are making increasing use of ocean resources so many more aquatic species, particularly sharks, are coming under threat. But it doesn’t have to be like this. With sufficient public support and resulting political will, we can turn the tide.”

The group’s specific recommendations for governments address the need to

• Establish and enforce science-based catch limits for sharks and rays
• Ensure an end to shark finning (removing fins and discarding bodies at sea)
• Improve the monitoring of fisheries taking sharks and rays
• Invest in shark and ray research and population assessment
• Minimize incidental catch (‘bycatch’) of sharks and rays
• Cooperate with other countries to conserve shared populations.

Notes to editors

Table of ocean pelagic sharks and their global IUCN Red List status
NB: Assessments marked with an asterisk (*) below have been submitted and accepted for inclusion in the 2008 IUCN Red List.

For more information, or to set up interviews, please contact:
• Sarah Halls, IUCN Media Relations Officer, Tel: +41 22 999 0127; Mobile: +49 170
721 4198; Email: sarah.halls@iucn.org
• Brian Thomson, IUCN Communications, Tel:+41 22 999 0251; Mobile: +49
170 693 8536; Email: brian.thomson@iucn.org
• Lynette Lew, IUCN Species Programme, Tel: +41 22 999 0153; Email:
lynette.lew@iucn.org
• Jennifer Beal, Wiley-Blackwell Public Relations Associate, Tel: +44 (0) 1243 770633;
Email: jbeal@wiley.com

This study is published in Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems.

Media wishing to receive a PDF of this article may contact jbeal@wiley.com
Full citation: Dulvy, Baum, Clarke, Compagno, Cortés, Domingo, Fordham, Fowler, Francis, Gibson,
Martínez, Musick, Soldo, Stevens and Valenti: You can swim but you can't hide: the global status and
conservation of oceanic pelagic sharks and rays. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater
Ecosystems. 2008:
A selected panel of the research authors will be available for interview at a press briefing on May 22,
2008, at 15:00 - 15:30 hours to take place at the 9th CoP of the Convention on Biological Diversity
(CBD), Bonn, 19-30 May, www.cbd.int/cop9

To arrange a separate interview with an author, please use the details below:
* Nick Dulvy, based at Simon Fraser University, Vancouver - nick_dulvy@sfu.ca
* Sarah Fowler, Co-Chair of the SSG - Sarah@NatureBureau.co.uk
* Sonja Fordham, Deputy Chair of the SSG and Policy Director for the Shark Alliance -
sfordham@oceanconservancy.org
This work was funded by the Lenfest Ocean Series Program.

About IUCN
IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, helps the world find pragmatic solutions to our
most pressing environment and development challenges by supporting scientific research; managing
field projects all over the world; and bringing governments, NGOs, the UN, international conventions and
companies together to develop policy, laws and best practice.

IUCN is the world’s oldest and largest global environmental network. IUCN is a democratic union with
more than 1,000 government and NGO member organizations, and some 10,000 volunteer scientists in
more than 150 countries. IUCN’s work is supported by 1,100 professional staff in 62 countries and
hundreds of partners in public, NGO and private sectors around the world.
www.iucn.org

About the IUCN Shark Specialist Group
The Shark Specialist Group (SSG) of IUCN’s Species Survival Commission aims to promote the longterm
conservation of the world’s chondrichthyan fishes, effective management of their fisheries and habitats and, where necessary, the recovery of their populations. One of the roles central to the SSG’s mission is the preparation of species assessments for the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species TM.

For more information on the IUCN Shark Specialist Group please visit:
http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/organizations/ssg/ssg.htm (soon moving to www.iucnssg.org).

About Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems
Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems is an international journal dedicated to
publishing original papers that relate specifically to freshwater, brackish or marine habitats and
encouraging work that spans these ecosystems. This journal provides a forum in which all aspects of
the conservation of aquatic biological resources can be presented and discussed, enabling greater
cooperation and efficiency in solving problems in aquatic resource conservation. The publication of both
practical studies in conservation as well as theoretical considerations of the underlying principles is
encouraged. Contributions are accepted from as wide a geographical range as possible to ensure a
broad representation of conservation issues in both developed and developing countries. The journal
also publishes short communications, review articles and discussions. Aquatic Conservation: Marine
and Freshwater Ecosystems can be accessed online at: www.interscience.wiley.com/journal/aqc

About Wiley-Blackwell
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by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., and its merger with Wiley’s Scientific, Technical, and Medical business.
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