Support for a Global Ban on Shark Finning

The article “Saving The Great White Monster” describes the alarming concerns about the cause and effect relationship about the rapid killing of the shark population. Shark fins are in more demand and there has been an increase in shark killings. The shark population is rapidly decreasing. More awareness is now being brought to this heartbreaking issue.

They do this because of the limited amount of space on the ship. Shark liver oil is used as a source of vitamin A, and some people believe that the cartilage and liver of a shark are extremely beneficial to human health. In earlier days the sharks' teeth-like scales on their skin was used as fine sandpaper, and when the scales were removed from their skin it made fine leather. This leather was used for making shoes, belts and handbags. Each year thousands of sharks are killed unintentionally due to nets used to catch different types of fish, and sometimes humans kill sharks because they fear them (Springer and Gold, 1989). All of these activities have resulted in many shark species being in danger of extinction.

Shark finning is the process of cutting off the fins of a shark and discarding the body at sea (“Stop Shark Finning”, 2009). People catch sharks for its fins, meat, oil, skin and so on. Sharks fins are most commonly used in Asian cooking which is shark fin soup. According to Maddalena, Sommeran and Leander (2007), people have been demanding for shark fins dramatically recently, it is unclear how many sharks are caught annually but some of the conservationists estimate the number to be upwards of 100 million. Besides, shark conservationists are aware about the consequences of the high demand of shark fins, they advocate people to stop killing sharks and eating shark fins. Practice of shark finning is causing imbalance marine ecosystems and it

Arising over 350 million years ago, the shark species has been labeled as a human devourer. Now, with the increase in human population, the demand for shark meat, fins, and cartilage are at an all time high; therefore, the existence of the shark is becoming a concern (Budker 1971). Individuals are conditioned to think of sharks as a negative aspect to the environment, which is prolonging the effort to save shark species from becoming extinct. With that in mind, some private as well as national organizations have accepted the challenge of educating and informing people about the existence of the shark specie and its importance to the sea.

Hyndes has supported his contention by offering suggestions to shark culling at the conclusion of his article. He states that we should be looking at ways to reduce our encounters with these “predators” as us humans are the people who continue to invade their habitat. Tracking systems is also another suggestion that Hyndes has offered in his article, as well as electronic devices and wetsuits. He hopes to convince the audience that we all need to be placing more effort and more funds into such an important issue by testing and develop these devices so that we can either deter sharks from entering our populated beaches or reduce our encounters with them. Hyndes hopes to emphasise that there are other solutions rather than culling these precious species.

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society’s article “The Brutal Business of Shark Finning” reminds us that sharks play a key role in the ocean as both predators and scavengers.

Sharks are a fundamental aspect of Australian waters, but shark culling has rapidly decreased the numbers over the past few years. The government definitely should not adopt a policy on shark culling, as sharks are the cornerstone to the contribution of social, environmental, economic and political aspects of our nation. If governments adopt this policy on shark culling, it will undoubtedly have a deliberate impact on the food chain. Additionally, even killing small numbers of already-threatened sharks will rapidly increase extinction risks of sharks. To conclude, humans contribute to the killing of more deaths than the opposite action done from sharks.

It was considered a delicacy for hundreds of years, something only emperors and royalty could afford. But now that China is becoming more industrialized more people and hotels can afford the meat needed for the soup at their banquets. It’s become a cultural dish, served at weddings and other special occasions to celebrate. One shark fin can sell for up to $500 a pound. China is the biggest, but there are also shark finning practices in Indonesia, India, and even the United States. However, the fin is the only part of the shark that gets used. Fishermen cut the fin off, usually while the shark is still alive, and throw the rest of the shark back into the ocean as the rest of the meat does not sell. Sharks are protected from being hunted in mostly North America and South America, but there are very few laws around Japan and China to prevent this hunting from happening. (Fairclough,

In “What do you know about sharks?” by Sharon Guynup and “Great White Sharks” by Peter Benchley the clique thought of the “anthropophagous”, savage, and villainous shark is turned on its head. The two articles take widely accepted myths and debunk them with facts. Evidence that supports that the fish aren’t the vicious marine people-eaters that the media has depicted them as has been found. In this text the findings on the animal will be explored. This is the shark’s Real Bite.

Within 1996-2000, shark fin imports increased by 6%. To get the shark fins, men would catch sharks, cut off their fins, and then throw them back into the water. Are shark fin soup worth killing millions and millions of sharks? There are also many different uses for the different parts of the shark. For example, shark oil can be used for makeup and cosmetics, shark cartilage pills supposedly benefits our health and is old in health food stores, and shark steaks are sold all over the world. Although there are many economic benefits from shark finning, it can also threaten recreational fisheries, and other traditional ways of fishing.

Sharks are being harvested in an irresponsible and unsustainable way. Many species of shark could go extinct within our lifetime. Overfishing has caused a dramatic decline of 90% for shark populations worldwide and up to a 99% decline on the US East Coast. (Jha, 2008) This issue is

Sharks are quickly becoming endangered due to killing and over fishing for a very expensive soup known as shark fin soup. Over 100 million sharks are killed a year for their fins. Sharks fins can go for as much as 300$ per pound. A law was passed in japan prohibiting bringing in fins of sharks without them being connected to the spine. Thinking this would help stop shark finning, it did not however. It only leads to gruesome deaths with fins still being brought in barely connect to the spine. “According to International Union for the Conservation of Nature, a third of shark species globally are threatened by extinction, largely because of shark finning.” So many sharks have died and are still not protected because the public is scared of them when in all reality it is the sharks who should be scared of

There are many ways humans stop sharks in their tracks. One example is the gill net. Gill nets wrap around a shark and, because sharks have to move to breathe and as they can’t swim backwards suffocate, die and, fall to the bottom of the sea, to be eaten by other sharks that also get stuck. This kills sharks but protects beaches in a cruel and, inhumane way. Experimental sonic devices have been used, such as shocking and stunning devices to blind them. Humans fear sharks so much so that they kill them and so, humans kill sharks every day. This makes shark species endangered, and harder to find making them more expensive, only making them killed off even more. While shark meat has been sold for many dollars to foreign eating establishments, fins of sharks have been cut off individually to be used in shark fin soup. They catch sharks cut off the sharks fins and then proceed to put the finless, bleeding and, dying sharks back into the water to be eaten. Many organizations help sharks by preserving them in the wild. Humans can help or kill sharks, and only this generation can stop this. As the shark population decreases fishers make more money on the sharks they bring in. In one year a shark species could go extinct from all the harvesting humans do to sharks. Organizations help by preserving sharks from people killing them. In sanctuaries and special waters sharks are left alone to grow again as a

lthough sharks can dive to a depth of 200 feet, they tend to stay in shallower water. Hunt, blacktip sharks will wait schools of fish to a sharp decline in the ridge or cliff or the ocean, or when there is a change in current water --- these are the areas where schools of fish are more easily captured and eaten. Like other sharks, blacktip sharks love a diverse number of species, are less numerous than their prey and usually are not preyed upon themselves, making them Apex predators.

Sharks are threatened species- Shark finning is already a cultural tradition. The popular shark fin soup is used to celebrate special occasions like celebrating the success of a business deal. Shark fin soup is an expensive status symbol. If this tradition continues, many sharks will get caught after their fin is cut off. This will endanger and threatened the shark species. Time will come when people will no longer find shark in the ocean. Shark’s lives are already in trouble and if nothing will be done to help preserve the life of the sharks our ecosystem will be greatly affected. Many groups are already doing something to protect the sharks but up to this moment everything is still