Researchers Sampled Shark Fin Trimmings From Hong Kong and Unraveled the Mystery of Where the Fins Belong

According to new research, sharks that live closer to our coastlines may be of greatest conservation concern as more than 70% of species that wind up in the worldwide shark fin trade are at risk of extinction.

Sharks At Risk for Extinction

(Photo : BERTHA WANG/AFP via Getty Images)

9,820 fin trimmings were collected by a group of international scientists from the U.S. and China from marketplaces in Hong Kong, one of the world's major centers for the sale of shark fins.

They were able to determine which fin belonged to which species through some DNA sleuthing.

Together with their relatives, the rays and chimeras, they discovered a total of 86 different species of sharks, as per ScienceDaily, and 61 of them, or more than two-thirds, face extinction.

The recent publication of the study in Conservation Letters.

Sharks and their relatives were evaluated by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species in 2021, and it was discovered that around one-third of all species were under threat.

The findings of this recent study showed that species involved in this trade are substantially more likely to fall under the threat category.

The collaborative team has been tracking and monitoring the international shark fin trade for almost ten years under the direction of Dr. Demian Chapman, adjunct professor at FIU and director of the Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium's Sharks & Rays Conservation Research Program.

About 10,000 tiny pieces from processed imported fins sold in marketplaces in South China and Hong Kong have undergone DNA testing thus far.

Collaboration on the project has been established with Kadoorie Farm & Botanic Garden and BLOOM Association Hong Kong.

The team wants to know more about what species are traded and how widespread they are. They will be able to advise decision-makers on the effectiveness of different management methods by monitoring this over time.

According to the study, open-ocean, or pelagic sharks like blue and silky sharks are the most frequent species to wind up in the shark fin trade.

Coastal regions are home to the majority of the trade's species, including the blacktip, dusky, spinner, and sandbar sharks, as well as several of the most prevalent ones.

Without control, many coastal species risk extinction, the researchers warned.

Also Read: Shark Population Down by 71%, Leading to a Possible Extinction

Shark Fin Trade

Shark fin soup is a traditional Asian dish, and every year up to 73 million sharks, whose fins are traded and sold, are used to produce it.

These sharks range from endangered species like scalloped hammerhead sharks and broad fin sharks to more common species from sustainable fisheries.

The idea that a large portion of the shark fin trade originates from sharks taken in far-off foreign waters, where fishing regulations are less precise and more difficult to implement, complicates conservation efforts, as per the National Geographic

According to a recent study that was just published in the journal Biology Letters, many of the shark fins that are sold in markets in Asia, North America, and South America come from sharks that were taken closer to shore, within the territorial waters of a small number of nations.

They asserted that this closeness may make it simpler than previously imagined to regulate the shark fin trade.

According to Kyle Van Houtan, chief scientist at the Monterey Bay Aquarium and the study's primary author, if sharks are taken within a country's exclusive economic zone [EEZ] and not in international waters, that's potentially good news since what occurs in an EEZ is within somebody's control.

That one nation is solely accountable for it.

The study also discovered that, contrary to expectations, numerous open-ocean species in the fin trade, including blue sharks, thresher sharks, and oceanic white tip sharks, were probably caught in territorial seas.

Van Houtan pointed out that although blue sharks are an open-ocean species, they are occasionally caught near his office in Monterey, California, off a fishing pier.

Cross-border wildlife trade is governed by CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.

Species on its list are those for which the international community has determined that stricter trade controls are necessary to prevent their numbers from declining.

The finding that more sharks are taken in coastal areas encourages because those fisheries can be monitored and managed more easily than those in international waters.

It might also imply a greater role for smaller boats, which are more common in coastal areas and harder to locate than a few big seagoing vessels.