SHARKS HUNTING

Sharks are killed by fishermen and hunters, by accident and intentionally. Millions of animals are caught in fishing nets and shark nets every year, struggling until exhaustion, when their bodies eventually collapse onto their organs, effectively crushing them to death. Shark nets are designed to deliberately capture and kill ‘dangerous’ shark species, and are responsible for the deaths of many predators as well as dozens of other harmless and even endangered species. Fishing nets are not designed to capture sharks, but indiscriminately scoop up everything that is unfortunate enough to be in the water at that time.
A frightening incident occurred in the late 1980’s, when 32 fishing boats embarked on an excursion to capture 3 million squid in Japan. However, they accidentally killed over 58 000 Blue Sharks, 52 Fur Seals, 914 dolphins, 141 porpoises, 25 Puffins and 22 marine turtles. This fleet had been using drift nets, which are dragged through vast expanses of water, catching everything in their path.
In contrast, fishermen have long been actively targeting sharks for their skin, meat, fins and the oil that is

Shark at market

found in their liver. The skin is used for leather products due to its beautifully smooth appearance and its sometimes-astounding thickness (designed to withstand the bites from males wanting to mate or during occasional battles). The fins are valuable for the delicacy, Shark Fin Soup, which costs about 100 US Dollars in Japan. Sadly, these fins are often savagely cut from the shark’s body while it is still alive, only for the body to be thrown back into the ocean to die slowly. The liver is proportionally very large, and is filled with oil that is significantly less dense than water, which is the shark’s chief means of remaining buoyant. This oil is valuable for its mineral content and for the products that can be made with it. However, these qualities can also be found in vegetable oils, and authorities are being urged to prohibit the killing of these animals for this purpose.

In some countries, such as Australia, it is illegal to kill certain species, particularly those that mature late, produce small litters and have extended periods between new litters. Examples of these are the Great White Shark and the Grey Nurse Shark.
There are several direct and indirect negative impacts made by the killing of sharks. Hunting these predators means lower population numbers, which could eventually result in the extinction of several species. It disturbs the natural order of the various species and the way that they interact with and influence one another. The relationship between prey and predator becomes unbalanced, allowing certain species that are usually preyed upon to explode in population numbers, eventually needing to be culled. When mass killings occur in certain areas, entire age groups or sexes are destroyed, leaving the remaining population with a huge gap in their generation and structure. Also significant is the fact that smaller sharks are prey for larger ones, so killing them diminishes the food supply for others. When sharks die, their carcass sinks to the ocean floor and sustains numerous species of fish and marine animals, big and small.

Shark Hunting and Commercial Fishing

Sharks come in all sizes and they are very fascinating creatures that live in waters all over the world. However, many of them have been hunted in large numbers over the years.

In many areas it is legal to hunt sharks and in some others the practice continues even though it is against the law. The thrill of hunting very large sharks is one that many people don’t want to miss out on. In fact, there are expeditions with guides that can lead people right to them for the right price.

Fishing or Fearing

One of the leading reasons for shark hunting has been to destroy them. There is no love lost between these creatures and man in many areas. Where commercial fishing is a huge industry, sharks are believed to be an entity that prevent the money being made like it should. The logic is that if they destroy the sharks that consume the fish they want to capture and sell commercially then they will get more of it in their nets.
Many people are afraid of sharks too so they feel by killing them they make the water safer for everyone in them. Even though evidence shows otherwise, there are still many that believe sharks are man eating killing machines. They certainly don’t want to share the water that the swim or go boating in with these animals.

The Killing Soup

Sharks are hunted for their fins too. In fact, making fin soup is a very common food in some parts of the world, like China. Extremely large sharks are often killed only to get their fins removed. The rest of the body is left to rot on the land or it is put back in the water for other creatures to feed upon.
The consumption of shark meat is common in some areas as well. They will hunt sharks and use their entire bodies. The meat is used for food and the fat for oil. They even use the skin to make sandpaper and various types of tools. All of these problems combined though have lead to an upset in the world of sharks. We have to remember that they are a vital part of the food chain.


Conservation Efforts to Deter Hunting
Due to conservation efforts, some species of sharks are now protected. This means individuals found to injure or kill them intentionally can be fined or they can go to jail. Yet there just doesn’t seem to be enough man power out there to strongly enforce some laws.

In some parts of the world there are limits to the number of sharks that can be killed annually. However, the governments of these areas usually don’t strictly enforce those limits either.
Certain types of sharks are more likely to be hunted than others. For those that wish to hunt them for a thrill, the larger ones and the more aggressive ones are what they seek out. Those often used for food reside in regions where their other choices for meat are likely to be scarce. In other areas, the types of sharks killed depend on the types of commercial hunting that take place there as well.
With the advances in technology, it is easier to kill sharks than in the past. The early people had to do so with nets and with spears. Now there are electronic devices, fast moving boats, and people can use special equipment to dive into the water to find the sharks they wish to hunt. Such events though can have a serious effect on the aquatic world if we aren’t careful. This is why you should definitely report any acts of shark hunting that you may be aware of to the proper authorities.