NOAA Fisheries has introduced a reckless proposal aimed at relaxing fishing regulations. If approved, these changes will drastically reduce protections for commercial and recreational shark fisheries across the northwestern Atlantic, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean. Public comment period ends May 29.
Read MoreDo Sharks Get Cancer?
There is a widespread, persistent myth that sharks are immune to cancer, largely popularized by a 1992 book titled Sharks Don’t Get Cancer by Dr William Lane. However, marine biologists and veterinary pathologists have definitively proven that sharks do develop both benign and malignant tumors.
Read MoreUrgent Measures Taken for Endangered Hammerheads
Governments at the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) have agreed to significant new protections for some of the world’s most endangered species of large sharks.
The decisions adopted at the the 15th Conference of the Parties (CoP15) in Campo Grande, Brazil last week included new listings of Hammerhead and Thresher sharks on CMS Appendix, I, the highest amount of protection provided internationally.
Read MorePublic Comments Needed to Defend the Endangered Species Act
On November 19th the Trump Administration has published a proposal by US Fish and Wildlife to roll back Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections, specifically focusing on the removal of the “blanket rule” and its impact on threatened shark species. The public has a December 22nd deadline to comment to prevent the ESA from being weekend.
Read MoreSHARKED Act in Senate Committee- Act Now
Reintroduced into the House in spring 2024, the Supporting the Health of Aquatic systems through Research Knowledge and Enhanced Dialogue Act of 2025 is supported by the recreational fishing industry and lobby bemoaning shark depredation on their catch. The bill could could have serious impacts on shark populations in all US waters. While ostensibly having Congress create a task force to examine shark depredation and human interactions, it has the potential to open protected areas or fishing for sharks. Without little scientific merit or credible support, the SHARKED Act language is a thinly veiled approach to open fishing on protected species and greenlight shark culls, tournaments and sportfishing for sharks in US waters.
Read MoreStrengthening Global Protection for Critically Endangered Sharks at CITES
Sharks are facing an unprecedented crisis. According to recent studies, more than 37% of shark and ray species are threatened with extinction, with this figure rising to a staggering 70% for species involved in international trade. These statistics underscore the critical importance of strengthening global protections for these vulnerable marine predators.
Read MoreMay Newsletter- EU Shark Fin Trade Ban, Shark Films & Events
View this email in your browser Stopping the Global Shark Fin Trade Following shark fin trade bans in Canada, the USA, (and soon the UK), the major source of shark fin […]
Read MoreShark Stewards CITES Intern Update, Vivian Guido
The requiem and hammerhead shark families include some of the most endangered species of sharks. Important apex predators, hammerheads and requiem sharks are among the highest traded fins in the Asian market. New research shows that 37% of all sharks are threatened with extinction, the highest percentage among vertebrate groups in the ocean. Pelagic (open ocean) sharks have declined over 70 percent in the last 50 years. Additionally, reef shark populations were found to be functionally extinct on 20% of coral reefs surveyed around the globe.of all species in the shark fin trade are endangered.
Read MoreVictory for Sharks – 90 Species Protected
Sharks and Rays Receive Appendix II Listing at CITES-CoP19
We just made history protecting sharks at CoP19 in Panama by bringing Requiem sharks (including blue sharks), all hammerhead sharks, freshwater rays, and small guitarfish under protection from the international shark meat and fin trade.
Petition to Protect Great Hammerhead Sharks Under Endangered Species Act
Shark Stewards joins the Center for Biological Diversity calling for increased protection for Great Hammerhead Sharks under the ESA and in their complete range. We are also asking NMFS to support the motion to uplist this species and the scalloped hammerhead to Appendix I at the Convention of International Trade of Endangered Species in Panama, 2022.
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