14 DAY TRIAL // This September 14, a new set of laws coined by members of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora is expected to come into effect, and conservationists could not be happier.
The laws, which were adopted during a meeting held in the city of Bangkok in Thailand last year, are all about protecting marine biodiversity. Specifically, they aim to ensure better protection for sharks and manta rays.
How the laws will safeguard marine creatures
As detailed by Live Science, this latest set of rules and regulations inked by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora limits the trade in several shark species and all manta ray species.
More precisely, the laws say that, in order to export meat, gills, and fins taken from animals belonging to the targeted species, special permits are required. Besides, those wishing to export live specimens will too have to obtain explicit approval.
The five shark species that this new legislation aims to protect are as follows: whitetip sharks (Carcharhinus longimanus), great hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna mokarran), scalloped hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna lewini), porbeagle sharks (Lamna nasus), and smooth hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna zygaena).
Conservationists and wildlife experts say that, if harvested in an unsustainable manner, these sharks, together with manta rays, risk going extinct in the not so distant future. Sharks are especially vulnerable to unsustainable fishing practices, seeing how they have a slow reproductive rate.
Just to help put things in perspective, it need be said that, according to recent estimates, a total of 100 million sharks were killed in 2000. In 2010, on the other hand, another 97 million such animals lost their life after a dangerously (and eventually deadly) close encounter with fishermen.
Most of the times, sharks are killed in order to harvest their meat and fins, which are then sold to restaurants and used to make various dishes. Apparently, shark fin soup is especially popular in East Asia. As explained by conservationists, shark liver oil and cartilage are too highly sought after.
Why bother to protect sharks?
The thing about sharks is that, as nasty as they seem in Hollywood blockbusters, they are actually quite useful to marine ecosystems. This is because they are top predators, and therefore play a huge role in keeping the food chain in check and making sure some species do not breed beyond control.
Thus, protecting sharks is simply a means to ensure that marine biodiversity altogether does not go haywire. As specialist Juan Carlos Vasquez put it, “The health of marine species like sharks is a good indicator of the health of this big marine ecosystem.”