Mediterranean sharks, rays, and skates not doing well

Written By Samantha Andrews, Founder, Ocean Oculus

Did you know that there are 208 measures in place to protect sharks, rays, and skates in the Mediterranean region?

Sounds like action is being taken. Except that action isn’t necessarily very effective. Mediterranean elasmobranchs (sharks, rays, and skates) are generally in decline. The biggest threats - overfishing, illegal fishing, mislabelling, and increasing marketing of shark meat.

Dr Lydia Koehler and Jason Lowther took a look at the measures Mediterranean coastal states were implementing to protect elasmobranchs to see what's going on. Rather than just pointing out the problems, they made some recommendations for improving the situation, too.

For example, they suggest cooperating with and integrating fishing communities with shark governance and increasing access to funding for collaborative actions.

➡️ Read the research (paywalled)

➡️ Read the preprint of the research article (open-access)

Poster of some of the sharks in the Mediterranean

Credit: Longitude 181

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Samantha Andrews, Founder, Ocean Oculus

Samantha is a marine ecologist, science communicator, and writer. Samantha be found talking or writing about our Earth in all its splendour—including the people and other animals who live here, and achieving a more sustainable future

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