Why Are Shark Numbers? Decline And What Is The Potential Effect On Eco Systems?

Overfishing is a death sentence to the world’s oceans. As technology continues to improve a great deal of fish can be caught quicker; but at what cost? The effects of overfishing can lead to the extinction of not just the animals being fished, but also the predators that rely on fish to eat. Ninety percent of the ocean’s largest animals have been wiped out due to overfishing (“Overfishing- A Global Disaster”, 2011). National Geographic cites the academic journal Science (2006) that predicts by 2048, all fisheries will collapse due to lack of ocean wildlife. Fish are not the only animal caught in the nets used by fishing vessels. Often animals such as dolphins, sharks, turtles, and seabirds are

Every Jaws fan knows the shark gets it in the end. What they do not know is that too many sharks have gotten it; and that has caused a rapid decline in the shark population over the past thirty years. Since the 1970's, sharks of the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico shores have declined eighty-five percent. Sharks are vital animal to our world's ecosystem, and if the decline is not controlled; we could be facing devastating problems in years to come. Information has been obtained from two books: The Shark Almanac by Thomas B. Allen and Sharks, An Introduction for the Amateur Naturalist by Sanford A. Moss. Sources also include a number of online references, among them BBC News, ENS News, The New York Times, and two online scientific

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

“Since the beginning of the industrial era, the ocean has absorbed some 525 billion tons of CO2 from the atmosphere, presently around 22 million tons per day” (Ocean Portal, n.d). This number is expected to increase forevermore as atmospheric carbon dioxide levels increase and the effects of Climate Change worsen. At first, the idea of our oceans absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere may sound great, however, scientists have been quick to learn otherwise. High concentrations of carbon dioxide in oceans can have detrimental effects on the ocean chemistry and marine ecosystems (Hardt; Safina, 2008). Marine ecosystems are greatly complex and depend on every marine organism to function properly, any change can put the whole ecosystem at risk. For example, the increase of carbon dioxide in our oceans is responsible for the dissolving of “brittle star” skeletal parts, which has in effect caused food scarcity for many fish, crabs, shrimp, and other starfish (Leu, 2013). Furthermore, these marine ecosystems are very important to humans- being the primary food source for millions around the world and having an economic market worth trillions of dollars (Hardt; Safina, 2008). Part of keeping these ecosystems safe is to understand how they work and how projected changes can harm marine organisms.

The earliest accounts of overfishing occurred in the 1800s, when the demand of whale blubber nearly wiped out the whale populations. In the mid 1900s, the harvesting of Atlantic cod, herring, and California sardines drove them to the brink of extinction. These high disruptions cause regional depletions of animal resources which is starting to cause a global problem. There has never been a more urgent time for fishing nations to make a commitment towards the sustainability of our oceans. More than 80% of the world’s fisheries have been, or are being pushed beyond their limits and are in dire need of strict management plans. Populations of fish and elasmobranch fish such as tuna, grouper and sharks have been declining to the point where the survival

Marine waters cover approximately four-fifths of the surface of the Earth. Such places are considered as an ecosystem because the plant life supports the animal life and vice versa. Marine ecosystems usually have quite a large biodiversity and are therefore thought to have a good resistance against invasive/introduced species. Sharks play a very important role in the oceans in a way that an average fish does not/can not. Sharks are at the top of the food chain and/or food web in virtually every single part of every ocean (Arctic, Atlantic, Indian, Pacific and Southern). Sharks keep the populations of other fish healthy and in proper proportion for the marine ecosystem; therefore if the shark population keeps decreasing there would be overpopulating species of fish and other food consumed by sharks. This could then lead on to cause many problems to the plant life as well, as some omnivorous animals may be forced to have a diet of strictly plants, which

The environmental factors are about the conditions and the surroundings that we live in. Shark finning is an awful practice that causes negative impacts for the environment. Once the sharks are caught, the fins are cut off and are returned to the waters. Almost always, they don’t survive due to predation to other animals, blood loss or from suffocation. The Shark Population is massively decreasing. Specialists estimate that approximately 100 million sharks are killed. In the marine ecosystem, sharks are probably the primary predators and ocean takers. They are apex predators who are responsible for keeping the population in balance. They have been around Earth for 400 million years. The Earth is 70% covered with water and it houses 80% of life on Earth, which is why it’s important to sustain this

Modern fishing methods have first and foremost created serious problems for ocean ecosystems. Scholastic Scope states, “The populations of almost all fish species that we eat have shrunken, some drastically, as a result of overfishing, or catching fish faster than they can reproduce” (Dignan 14). Sadly, fish cannot reproduce fast enough to sustain their populations when different fishing techniques drain their ecosystem’s health. Because humans are relatively new organisms, fish, a much older species, have not adapted to modern fishing techniques and overfishing in the sea. Therefore, oceans are at risk because fish cannot compete with newer, more efficient fishing techniques produced by humans. Climate change is furthermore another major threat to oceans. As published by Scholastic Scope, “Warming ocean waters, rising sea levels, and violent storms disrupt the lives of many species and affect fragile marine ecosystems” (Dignan 14). Although climate change may now be a controversial issue, its footprint and effects have no doubt left their mark. Powerful and destructive climate change has also been the culprit of extinction for many other animals such as the marine animals during the Permian-Triassic extinction event. Since things often repeat itself in history, the ocean could have a Holocene extinction event, which would completely

Our delicate eco-system is struggling to maintain it’s complex equilibrium. The precarious state of our oceans are largely attributed to the climate changes that are on going throughout earth. Along with consistently rising global temperatures come many devastating consequences. Our atmosphere is not the only aspect of our environment that is heating. Global warming is melting polar ice caps, raising water levels in our oceans, and releasing carbon that has been trapped in ice for thousands of years. The warmer air temperature is heating the surface waters of the ocean and creating more frequent and more powerful storms. These warmer surface waters are being pushed under in the ocean conveyor belt and the overall affect is a rise in overall ocean water temperatures. Climate change has been estimated to effect 88% of cetaceans and endangering nearly 21%. More specifically, each of these changes have harmful, potentially deadly and lasting effects on Bottlenose Dolphins. Ultimately causing dangerous and toxic conditions leading to an increase of dolphin strandings and death.

Sharks play a crucial role in the ecosystem. They are an apex predator and are critical to keeping balance and safety of their community and even their ecosystem. Due to overexploitation, many species of sharks are close to extinction and this can lead to devastating impacts in the ocean ecosystem. The shark keeps the food webs in balance. The keep the population of many prey under checked. For example since the population of sharks have dwindled down, the cow nose ray population blew out of proportion. Because of this the ray destroyed the population of one of their main source of food, the bay scallops. If it were not for sharks, many species would overpopulate and cause the same harm as the cow nose ray. While keeping prey from overpopulation,

a) Sharks are exposed to so many harmful chemical all over the world that are transferred from river and dumped in the ocean. Oil spills, pollution and chemical waste are all key factor to habitat degradation.

The Great White Shark, immortalized by the Hollywood film Jaws, is at the midst of an international controversy. The shark, despite its notoriety, is in danger of extinction. A conflict over the fate of these sharks has existed for decades, but with recent attacks the debate has come to the forefront. The environmental conflict over the Great White Shark has yet to reach a conclusion, as many factors exist that hinder resolution possibilities. The purpose of this paper is to provide background information on the debate in an attempt to understand why consensus has so far been unattainable. This paper provides basic information including subsequent legislation, stakeholders, factors to

The world we live in is so vast and exciting. Seventy percent of our world is liquid water we call the ocean. In the ocean there are many creatures that each are unique in their own way. However, it is possible that in our lifetime, many marine organisms will become endangered or possibly extinct. The loss of these mejestic marine creatures will be caused mainly because of human advancements in which fossil fuels are used to produce energy. Biodiversity is greatly affected by this increase in acidity. As the ocean acidifies, multiple social and economic issues arise. As humans, we rely on the ocean for almost everything. Much of our food, clothing, cleaning products and cosmetics come from the ocean. With the loss of

The main factors in this climate change are observed to be the increase in temperatures and the resulting acidification of the oceans. The previously mentioned changes and others in the report are readily observable, such as the uptake of anthropogenic carbon since 1750 that has led to the ocean becoming more acidic, with an average decrease in pH of 0.1 units and in some instances blatantly obvious, even to the average layperson. It is difficult to conclude what the rate of change in the future will be and the effects of observed ocean acidification on the marine biosphere.

Marine biologist play a key role in understanding climate change and identifying sustainable and profitable ways humans can use the sea and its resources. Marine biologist understand marine organisms needs in their habitats, ultimately helping protect species and reduce human threats. As experts in understanding marine habitats, marine biologist often form essential parts of relief teams. They respond to oil spills and chemical leaks, helping other scientist restore normalcy to local habitats. Sometimes, marine biologists influence other spheres, such as economics and law. They might analyze the effect of sonar on whales and seals, for instance, recommending best practices for reducing harm on those sensitive populations. Marine biologists understand how the ocean supports basic needs, and in turn relay that information to lawmakers, who establish protocols regarding human use of ocean waters and marine organisms. Marine biologist help develop ocean technology too, improving waste elimination, energy sourcing and extraction of key sources. A brief review of components of the marine environment, world food resources, climate control, air and water quality, transportation, and the ecosystem balance are important features that are studied by marine biology. So, understanding why marine biology is important is foundational to integrating a balanced approach toward management of the sea and proper stewardship of organisms,