November 25, 2022 — The International Commission for Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT) wrapped up its 23rd special meeting with agreements on bluefin tuna and shark conservation.
At the meeting – held in a hybrid live and online format in Vale do Lobo, Portugal from 14 to 21 November – ICCAT member-states agreed to establish a management procedure for Atlantic bluefin and set a catch quota for the Southern Atlantic mako shark population.
January 27, 2020 — An essay in the January newsletter of the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association claimed that populations of shortfin mako sharks — a popular sport fish and a tasty offering on local menus — are “in crisis,” with fewer and smaller mako sharks being caught compared to 25 years ago.
The piece — on pages 8, 31, and 32 in the association’s newsletter — written by Long Island, N.Y., attorney Charles Witek, a recreational fisherman who identifies himself as a consultant on fisheries management issues, also criticizes the measures adopted to reduce shark mortality and the long timeline for rebuilding the population.
“Even if such reductions could be achieved, it will take about 50 years to return the shortfin mako stock to something resembling a healthy level of abundance,” Witek wrote. “Which, in turn, means that I and probably most of the people reading this article, will never see a healthy mako population in our lifetimes.”
Although shark biologists in southern New England disagree that makos are “in crisis,” those surveyed agree that the species is being overfished and that, even if targeted fishing for the species around the world was eliminated entirely, it would likely take at least several decades for the species to recover to healthy levels.
November 27, 2019 — The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas ended its annual meeting on Monday, 25 November, with members unable to approve a recovery plan conservationists believe is essential for the long-term survival of shortfin mako sharks.
At least two groups pinned the blame on the United States and the European Union. During the weeklong meeting in Mallorca, Spain, it was decided that the commission would continue to use guidelines passed two years ago that some fear will lead to further population declines.
November 14, 2019 — The following was released by the LenFest Ocean Program:
On Wednesday, November 13, Dr. Mark Bravington of Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) discussed his work to improve the information used to assess and manage shortfin mako sharks in the Atlantic Ocean.
A recording of the webinar is now available and can be accessed here.
For the past several months, Dr. Bravington has been examining the feasibility of a genetic method known as close-kin mark-recapture for estimating shortfin mako shark abundance in a way that avoids the limitations and biases associated with estimates collected through fishing activities. Such a tool could help fisheries scientists develop more accurate stock assessments to inform effective management strategies for this species, which is overfished in the North Atlantic.
Download the project fact sheet to learn more.
November 11, 2019 — The following was released by the Lenfest Ocean Program:
Join us on Wednesday, November 13 for a webinar featuring Dr. Mark Bravington of Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), where he will discuss his work to improve the information used to assess and manage shortfin mako sharks in the Atlantic Ocean.
*TIME CHANGE* Mark will now be offering the webinar twice on November 13: at 9 am GMT for eastern Atlantic audiences, and at 4 pm EST for western Atlantic audiences.
Register for the 9 am GMT webinar
Register for the 4 pm EST webinar
For the past several months, Dr. Bravington has been examining the feasibility of a genetic method known as close-kin mark-recapture for estimating shortfin mako shark abundance in a way that avoids the limitations and biases associated with estimates collected through fishing activities. Such a tool could help fisheries scientists develop more accurate stock assessments to inform effective management strategies for this species, which is overfished in the North Atlantic.
Download the project fact sheet to learn more.
November 5, 2019 — The following was released by The New Food Economy:
Late last month, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) sent out a newsletter featuring a potentially surprising piece of advice: For a sustainable source of protein, try eating shark sometime. NMFS is an arm of the federal science agency, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and it’s responsible for protecting fish populations and their ocean habitats.
“While overfishing has greatly depleted some shark populations overseas, U.S. shark fisheries are some of the most sustainable in the world,” it read. I did a double take, racking my memory for the last time I saw shark as an option at the grocery store or on a restaurant menu. The press release seemed to run contrary to my general sense that shark populations were in jeopardy everywhere.
In August, for example, scientists warned that levels of the popular shortfin mako shark in the Atlantic ocean—for which NMFS has catch limits—are so overfished that they would require until 2045 to fully recover, even if a total harvesting ban was enacted. In July, the Animal Welfare Institute published its annual directory of restaurants whose menus include dishes made from shark fin, rising demand for which contributes to declining shark stocks. And in 2013, researchers issued this dire warning: Commercial fisheries kill approximately 100 million sharks every year, far faster than the rate at which sharks can repopulate.
October 24, 2019 — The following was released by the Lenfest Ocean Program:
Join us on Wednesday, November 13 at 9:00 am EST/2:00 pm GMT for a webinar featuring Dr. Mark Bravington of Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), where he will discuss his work to improve the information used to assess and manage shortfin mako sharks in the Atlantic Ocean.
For the past several months, Dr. Bravington has been examining the feasibility of a genetic method known as close-kin mark-recapture for estimating shortfin mako shark abundance in a way that avoids the limitations and biases associated with estimates collected through fishing activities. Such a tool could help fisheries scientists develop more accurate stock assessments to inform effective management strategies for this species, which is overfished in the North Atlantic.
Download the project fact sheet to learn more.
July 22, 2017 — A fishing boat named the Jenny Lee caught a 926-pound Mako shark Saturday morning and it could be the largest shark catch in New Jersey history.
The crew was fishing 100 miles off of the coast of New Jersey in an area known as Hudson Canyon. It took the crew a little over an hour to reel in the shark and hour and a half to get him into the boat, Kevin Gerrity, captain of the Jenny Lee, said.
“It’s a pretty awesome feeling,” Gerrity said. “We saw him swimming up to the boat. We didn’t think we were going to get him but we got him.”
“We were able to get him with a skipjack fillet with a squid combo as his last meal,” Gerrity added jokingly.
December 8, 2016 — A mako shark caught by commercial fishermen off North Carolina traveled more than 8,500 miles after a tracking device was attached 18 months earlier, an ocean research group says.
Researchers studying shark migrations for the Guy Harvey Research Institute at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., attached the device to the female shark’s dorsal fin in mid-2015 near Ocean City, Md.
A donation to the institute by Heather Finke sponsored the tag in honor of Charlotte Latin School.
A commercial long-line fishing boat caught the shark near Manns Harbor last month. The last of the tag’s 265 data transmissions from the sea to an orbiting satellite was recorded on Nov. 24.
Data show the shark swimming up and down the East Coast (click mako sharks > W. North Atlantic > Charlotte) between North Carolina and Rhode Island, making one big loop into the Atlantic north of Bermuda last spring. It traveled an average of 15 miles a day over 557 days.
“We’re happy to have recovered the satellite tag, but disappointed about the loss of the mako,” said executive director Greg Jacoski of the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation, which supplies the tags. “It’s important for us to recover tags because of the value they have for our research efforts.”
June 23, 2016 — The following was released by the Garden State Seafood Association:
Finning of sharks (the process of removing fins at sea and discarding the shark) is currently illegal in the U.S. and Garden State Seafood Association (GSSA) supports that law. The Shark Conservation Act of 2010 (SCA) prohibits any person from removing any of the fins of a shark at sea and discarding its body. The GSSA supports this law and existing associated exemptions for spiny dogfish and smooth dogfish sharks.
However, there is a direct federal allowance for the sale and possession of legally-harvested shark fins regulated and supported by NOAA, the U.S. Congress and the Obama Administration. Any effort to overturn this allowance at the federal level is simply not based on fact.
The “Shark Fin Trade Elimination Act of 2016” makes it illegal to sell the fins from legally-harvested shark species, including all large coastal sharks, Threshers and Mako. One result of this requirement may include the fins of these sharks being removed on shore after harvest and needlessly thrown away.
This legislation represents a shameful waste of food and results in decreased revenues to New Jersey fishermen and their families. It will harm commercial fisherman, their families, and coastal communities around the Nation who participate in legal shark fisheries. And since sharks are already sustainably managed by NOAA, the legislation adds no conservation benefit to shark resources.
U.S. fisheries management has a strong conservation ethic with respect to our shark fisheries. The sharks we harvest are sustainably managed by NOAA, the meat is consumed throughout the U.S. and around the world, and the fins associated with these legally-harvested sharks are desired by overseas markets for their food and cultural significance.
Support U.S. fishermen and U.S fisheries management by OPPOSING the Shark Fin Trade Elimination Act of 2016
About the Garden State Seafood Association:
The GSSA is comprised of commercial fishermen, shore-based seafood processors, commercial dock facilities, seafood markets and restaurants, and various NJ-based commercial fishing industry support businesses. The GSSA membership represents every major port in the State, harvesting approximately $100 million dollars worth of seafood products annually, supporting 2000 jobs, and contributing significantly to the coastal economy of the State of New Jersey.