The shark diving industry blog covering sharks, shark cage diving, shark conservation and things we find "amusing" since 2008 www.sharkdiver.com, www.sharkdivers.com, www.divingwithsharks.com
Showing posts with label conservation idea. Show all posts
Showing posts with label conservation idea. Show all posts
The announcement of a new multi-million dollar trade agreement between Canada and China has set the seal conservation world ablaze.
For those of us a bit more left of center, this trade agreement is nothing new, and the main reason why many of "save the" campaigns ultimately fail.
While we're sure these fine ladies of PETA mean well, what they are doing here does not affect trade between nations. In fact all direct action seems to accomplish these days is in securing shows on Discovery Networks.
These shows are all but guaranteed to run 20-30 seasons of "saving the" with some colorful moments for audiences to watch. But at the end of the day markets are won and lost by trade agreements and even the top tier "save the" campaigns are at the whim of new trade agreements forged in desperation, or in multi-year packages.
As was the case recently in Canada.
The fact is after all the petitions, after all the sound bytes and protests, trade remains the driver.
Case in point Alibaba.com. Once the most egregious online platform for the sale and trade of shark fin, a global campaign to shut down this online trade was ultimately successful.
For exactly three months.
Today there are 5-8 online trade platforms that trade the same volume of shark fins. An eye opener for us when these sites were discovered, and a clear line of attack for conservation groups looking to effect change.
Go after the trade.
The debate about sustainable harvests with seals will go on forever, as apparently will the trade in seal meat and furs, to be recycled in China and sold back to us in the form of fur lined boots and premium dog food no doubt.
The end users of trade are the most vulnerable and usually have the most to lose. The folks on the front lines, the guys with the Hakapiks on ice flows in Canada make nice media targets but at the end of the day have the least to lose, because they are starting with little to begin with. Same goes for the shark finners in Mozambique, or the folks in Latin America coming in with tons of sharks fin on second and third rate fishing boats, selling their fins for a dollar a pound.
Change can come, and ultimately conservation groups can be successful, but the days of staged multi-million dollar media extravaganzas on television, small protests with semi naked protesters, and the endless cycle of online petitions has to end.
Trade agreements between nations trump everything and right now very few NGO's have a seat at the table when it comes to changing trade agreements.
It's a race everyone involved in "save the" campaigns can ill afford to lose.
If Chuck Thompson was prize fighter - he would be in the bare knuckles class. As we have been quietly pointing out the shark conservation movement is in trouble when it comes to the plethora of non NGO's who are tackling this global problem.
Not for a lack of deeply held convictions, desire for eco-stardom, media hits, or even petitions.
The movement has plenty of those.
In a recent expose in Guy Harvey Magazine Chuck looks into the shark world, interviewing "the usual volunteer bleeding hearts," to garner non-scientific quotes on the "state of the union" of shark conservation.
The myth that the shark fin trade is run exclusively by Asian mafia. It is not. That misconception has lead many to believe this lawful trade is something sinister, instead of something that can be taken apart by attacking the trade itself.
What's needed is new thinking and a change in tactics because this is eco issue ultimately about trade, not sound bytes, Asians, a soup, or even failed reality television show bids on Animal Planet.
Kudos to Chuck Thompson for the article and the expose. If the movement is serious about saving sharks - it will have to get serious about what it is up against first.
At the intersection of of art and ocean conservation one name stands out - Angela Pozzi.
This unique piece is taken from plastic left overs, things that washed up onshore, transforming man made garbage into art forms that educate and inspire future generations to change.
Her garbage fish has received rave reviews internationally and she is hoping that artists will imitate her unique vision around the planet.
Not a bad idea and not just limited to second hand oceanic garbage.
Imagine a full scale white shark model made from sharks fin. The dollar value of that single piece of art would have quite an impact and for the public a profound visual understanding of sheer waste that is the shark fin trade.
Kudos to Angela for her two ton masterpiece of garbage art.
Dive and shark enthusiasts are requested to assist the 'Thresher Shark Research and Conservation Project’ (TSRCP) in conducting fieldwork in the Philippines from January – September 2011. This is an unique opportunity for individuals with a keen interest in diving with sharks to gain hands on experience in shark survey methodology, behaviour, biology, ecology and conservation. Volunteers will be based on Malapascua Island (Cebu) and shuttled to Monad Shoal aboard a dedicated research vessel. Ops will run from 05:00 to 20:00 five days a week and include SCUBA survey, underwater video observation, tagging (pending funding) and photographic ID databasing. Evenings will be spent in academics, training, reviewing video observations, analysing data and preparing for the next day’s ops.
All volunteers will receive comprehensive hands on training in shark research methodology, marine wildlife photography, marine videography and analytical approaches to understanding shark behaviour. Volunteers will also receive academics in shark biology, ecology, conservation and ethology (behaviour) and will apply learned concepts to the analysis of real data that they acquire on a daily basis. Members will benefit from a close working relationship with a specialist.
For expedition dates and details please visit The Thresher Shark Research and Conservation Project at:
(Reuters) - A team of U.S. scientists and environmentalists met with Cuban officials this week to discuss a proposed alliance, including Mexico, to protect the Gulf of Mexico's declining shark population.
The meetings were a product of both improved U.S.-Cuba relations and concern that only a joint effort by the three nations that share the gulf can protect sharks, whose numbers are said to be down as much as 50 percent for some species.
"The Gulf of Mexico is one ecosystem, it's not just the U.S. gulf. The shark is a highly migratory fish that moves between the countries and it is troubled," said Pamela Baker, gulf policy advisor for the New York-based Environmental Defense Fund, which is spearheading the effort along with the Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota, Florida.
Shark populations have fallen worldwide, primarily due to overfishing to satisfy China's demand for shark fin soup, which is rising as China becomes more prosperous, scientists say.
An estimated 73 million sharks are being killed annually mostly for their fins, the EDF said in a recent publication.
Still unknown, said shark expert Robert Hueter at the Mote Marine Laboratory, is the effect of the massive BP oil spill this summer in the Gulf of Mexico.
Dr Mahmood Shivji with the Guy Harvey Foundation penned an outstanding Op Ed this week:
For the longest time after the 1975 blockbuster “JAWS” gave us a spine-tingling ride, there was an often used saying that “the only good shark is a dead shark”. This man- against-beast thriller and its many progeny shark horror flicks still pervade the public’s psyche, anointing all sharks as human-eaters and keeping many beach-goers out of the ocean.
The public and media’s morbid fascination with sharks as killing “machines” continues today. There is a steady stream of media coverage when fishers catch and drag back a large shark for photo-ops. In some minds, catching and killing a large shark is almost heroic and fashionable, and a testament to man’s superiority in the “battle” against the beast.
Meanwhile, the enormous toll taken on shark numbers worldwide due to indiscriminate fisheries continues unabated. All this shark killing causes some to wring their hands in anguish about longer-term ecological impacts. Others say “what’s the big deal if sharks are killed?”
Who’s right? Should we care if many of the oceans large sharks are exterminated? Is there really enough of an impact on the marine environment to worry about?
One of the more interesting members of the conservation/film and television community is, without a doubt, Scott Cassell.
Recently he's been involved with a front running conservation project called rECOn.
rECOn changes the way the public views conservation initiatives by documenting and then putting in jail poachers in regions where enforcement is non existent.
This is boots on the ground enforcement to effect conservation change.
Scott just got back from Baja with this after action report from his team.
What they discovered in Baja shocked them and will shock you as well.
Warning: Contains language and heartfelt emotion:
Dale and I have just returned from our latest rECOn mission hunting poachers which ran from August 15th to the 20th.This time we were joined by cameraman XXX whom was filming our operation for consideration to produce a series for XXX.
XXX had expectations but he expressed they were exceeded by what he saw and now is a firm believer in what Dale and I do as we hunt and film some of the the worst of humans.
Weeks ago Dale had a tip that somewhere near the city dump was a pile of shark heads. Intrigued we searched around and in short order we found what we were looking for.Frankly, none of us were ready for what we would find.
The first few shark heads we found were tiny. Barely 2.5 inches across indicating the (Silky) sharks were only 10 inches to one foot long. These were just babies! We found 27 heads (20 silky, three hammerhead and four dogfish) and were disgusted with the cowardly act of slaughtering baby sharks for the export of their tiny fins to the Asian markets and the tiny fillets being sold at the local markets.
We decided to lay them all out in neat rows to film them and as I maneuvered to make the line straight my foot slipped into a burn pile opening up the charred surface exposing underneath. Dozens of tiny shark heads showed through... and as Dale, xxx and I looked around with our eyes calibrated to what to look for we began to realize what was all around us.We found an old plastic box-crate and began loading it up with all of the tiny shark heads and the deeper we dug the more we found... then I found the worst of it.A huge pile of of horse shit covered hundreds of baby shark heads.
I love sharks. I love sharks like many folks love dogs and cats.For years I have hand fed and admired sharks. I have tagged them, saved them for net entanglement, and reached out and touched ‘one ton’ white sharks and tigers as they swim by in their full majesty... and my life is greatly enriched because of these unique encounters.
To discover over one thousand disembodied heads of babies in a dump covered in horse shit was almost too much to endure. All of this suffering for sushi and shark-fin soup.
XXX found the heart to keep filming and despite his own emotions... he kept asking me to talk to the camera in order to record my reactions to this display of ‘humanity’.I found myself on the verge of tears as I dug out tiny lifeless heads of shark pups with their vacant eyes staring into man’s world of trash.The anger welling up inside of me had to be focused as I inhaled the dust composed of murdered babies, horse shit and human filth.This illustration of man’s complete lack of respect for the sea and indeed for life itself lowered my faith in Mexican fishermen and mankind overall.
Dale called out to us with another sickening discovery... but at least this one offered a recourse I very much wanted. “Dude! Here are about 25 to 30 poached Totuaba!”XXX and I came over to see for ourselves and confirmed his discovery.Dale had carefully laid out about ten of the dozens of filleted fish carcasses for positive identification. The tell-tale rounded Caudal fin and skull shape offered the positive ID we needed to present as evidence and we carefully video recorded it.
This has special significance to us because the Totuaba were fished to near extinction and are now protected by Mexican law. Having a Totuaba in your possession regardless of how you obtained it is a mandatory 8 year prison sentence.So, if we can find out where the poachers fish the Totuaba we can find WHO they are and bust them.
XXX, Dale and I gathered at the tail gate of the truck and reflected for a moment on what we just found and I glanced across the dump at a strange shape propped-up on a rock. At first I thought it was just a piece of junk like a trash can lid... then I saw a familiar shape along the edge of it. “No Way!” I jumped up and set to look at it with a quick walk.What I thought was junk was a Green Sea Turtle shell with the center kicked in by a poachers boot-covered foot.What I did not know is that I had just found the best way to catch these sick bastards.Dale had a network of friends in the area and they know everything that goes on nearby.They know Sea Turtles are easy to poach.
The next morning we set out on Dale’s panga to the islands we selected to explore for Poaching activity. Upon arrival to Lobos Island we noticed the Sea Lions were afraid of human approach and scrambled off rocks at the sight of us. This behavior is learned, not instinctual. Here humans kill Sea Lions.As most Sea Lions scrambled into the water I noticed on was hesitant to leave her rock perch. We slowly worked our way closer to her and noticed she had a dark ring around her neck. I trained binoculars at her as XXX focused his camera’s long lens on her and we both saw she was gravely injured from a Poachers net fragment cutting through her skin, blubber and muscle into her throat.I took out my knife and asked Dale to close it so I might try to jump-tackle her and cut the net off... but she dove in at the last second closing the window of opportunity on her survival.
Under permit, we landed and began our survey for poaching activity and didn't have to look long. XXX, Dale and I found several dead Sea Lions with either nets on entangled on them, or stab wounds on their head and necks.But the real heart breaker was when Dale discovered a baby Sea Lion corpse with a suspicious head wound and called me over. Upon inspection I discovered it was blunt trauma induced skull fracture. The baby was killed by a rock strike at the base of the occipital of the skull.
Poachers murder the innocent.
We left the island with heavy hearts.
As we arrived back to the storage location for the Dale’s panga we unloaded the gear but Dale quietly disappeared with an old friend of his to chat with him. XXX and I finished unloading the boat and waited in the truck. Upon Dale’s return he looked visibly upset. “GUYS!” He demanded, “You cannot even F___KING believe what just happened! I just got a tip on the Sea Turtle Poachers!”“Some guys want to sell me Sea Turtle meat!”
We unloaded our gear and prepared for what was about to happen. XXX assembled his long-lens with a Night Vision intensifier and I set up a small camcorder to give to Dale. The mission was simple although potentially very dangerous.Dale was going to go into the poacher’s campo and film the Sea Turtle while pretending to want to buy it.
With XXX set up on an observation point to film Dale at long range and Dale’s tiny HDV camcorder ready, Dale jumped into the truck and drove to the Poacher’s campo. XXX was able to film Dale’s entire drive into the campo and even captured outstanding images of him walking to the Sea Turtle’s remains (on a table). At that point it was all up to Dale to film the Sea Turtle’s body and what the Poachers were saying. Much to Dale’s credit he filmed the Sea Turtle, the poacher’s faces and even recorded them saying how they kill up to two Sea Turtles per day, how to cook the meat and even the methods of how and where they set nets to catch them!
Dale politely declined purchasing the dead Sea Turtle and chatted with them about weather, fishing, a cut on a fisherman’s hand and eventually left safely.
So: How much is a Sea Turtle worth?The Sea Turtle was offered to Dale for $100. We decided it would have sold for much less to a Mexican.
Upon his return we watched the film Dale captured and it was incredible!Now we needed to film them in the act of fishing for turtles and (thanks to Dale’s film) we knew exactly where and when to set up the surveillance.Almost on cue, a Poacher carries a huge net on his shoulder to the shoreline in complete darkness... all the while being filmed by XXX’s watchful eye (complete with night vision camera).Once the Poacher dropped the net Dale and I set out on the beach to get close up images of the net to be certain it is the kind used to kill Sea Turtles.Dale set up an over-watch position with an Electrophysics Thermal Camera and radio to keep me informed of Poacher movements, especially if he decided to return to the net while I was there filming it.I used my Sony Z-1 with an Electrophysics Night Vision 9350BRAC Module to film in the darkness like it was daytime.I worked my way out on the beach to the net in a low a profile to avoid detection while Dale looked out for me.XXX was filming us both from a higher more distant vantage point using his night vision module and long lens.
After some sneaking around I found the Poacher’s net and confirmed it was the kind used to kill Sea Turtles. A surge of anger rushed through me and I wanted to destroy the net and wrap it around the Poacher’s neck like the condemned female Sea Lion we saw earlier... but I stayed on the mission profile and departed the area.As soon as I found Dale’s over-watch position and joined him the Poacher was half-way to the net. I luckily missed the Poacher’s return by less than a minute!In my heart I felt it was more lucky for the Poacher than me we did not meet alone in the dark.
We silently filmed the Poacher deploy the net over the course of 45 minutes in the darkness.I felt good about the footage we caught but was seething inside about the innocent creatures this drug-hooked-miserable-excuse of a human was responsible for killing for a few pesos. He was not a man. He was a coward.
The next morning we all loaded Dale’s panga and we went around the point to where the Poacher’s net was set.Dale passed by the cove a few times in order to give me amble opportunity to get a compass course set with my TAC board.I finished putting the Ghuille cover on my O2 rebreather and I donned my new Riffe Cryptic Camo Wetsuit and combat dive gear and slipped into the water. On my TAC board was a HERO HD Camcorder facing me to record my actions during the dive and another was mounted on my helmet facing forward to recordwhat I saw.I descended to 20 fsw and noticed how my body blended perfectly into the water thanks to the Riffe suit.I made a communications call to Dale and then followed my pre-determined course and counted kick strokes right up to the net (which was in full view of the Poacher’s campo... hence the need for stealth).The net was already indiscriminately killing fish while it waited for the illegal targets (Sea Turtle) to wander to close.I filmed the full length of the coward’s technology and called Dale to let him know I was safe and departing the net back to the boat.Once back onboard we left the site to set up another surveillance site to wait for the poachers to recover the net.They never came.Did they get tipped off to our operation?Were they just too high to care about getting their illegal catch out before it spoils?We may never know... but we did collect several nets and placed them into our little bonfire ring.It feels really good to destroy these nets and I hope it financially cripples these bastards so they find it harder to Poach.
Dale, XXX and I were lucky enough to meet with our ‘client’ in Baja as we headed back to the US.We showed him some of our evidence and explained in detail what we found. He was quiet at first... then he offered us some insight to his vast wisdom and experience.He told us he would be able to take our evidence and show an exclusive audience what we have discovered.These powerful people will influence other leaders to design change and encourage new directions of protection.But... before that he will take our evidence and show it to the Mexican District Attorney so he can open an investigation, make arrests and remove these people from the equation.
As of today, four Poachers face 8 years in prison each. A Mexican prison.
Although this is a good result... I am haunted by the vacant eyes of a thousand baby sharks, the dead baby Sea Lions and the complete lack of respect for life and the oceanthese Poachers demonstrated.
As my friend Dale put it:
“The poacher is an international fugitive, not just a mexican one. The mind of a poacher transcends borders and morality, they are of the same mind no matter where you go. Out for fast easy money with no regard for the law, or the world for that matter”.
I will never stop Hunting Poachers. The rECOn Mission has just begun.
Once again "provoking thought" with David Shiffman over at Southern Fried Science this morning.
Where we tend to point out issues with the shark conservation movement that either work or do not, assuming that folks know what we're talking about, David has gone in depth and drilled down to the essentials.
We tend to agree with David on a lot of things, because he thinks strategically and often.
The shark conservation world needs critical thinking. Reacting is good, but you can only get so far "reacting to" a global shark crises.
Shark Revolution is a communication project done by Nature online aisbl, an International non profit organization. The objective of this project is to re-establish the reality of our species and to propose a truce to regulate the relationship between our two communities.
We have decided to take the initiative so that you can see what our day to day life is like.
Our website will follow our adventure. We will produce a black and white photographic exhibition. An artistic book in black and white with the best photos of our encounters. We will produce books with children’s stories with the most representative elements of our life.
Thanks to Oceanic Dreams for posting this conservation PSA.
Have we evolved in our stewardship of the oceans?
This PSA might suggest we have a long way to go just yet. Impressive media, and this is how you do conservation messaging. The subject matter is stark, ugly and frank.
As conservationists we have to look at these issues in the wider context, for the rest of the world policy making by politicians and viral media PSA's like this one are an absolutely effective means of changing hearts and minds.
February 18, 2010 Contact: Lee Schlesinger, 850-487-0554
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved a rule Thursday to prohibit all recreational and commercial harvest of lemon sharks from Florida waters. The FWC took this action to protect lemon sharks, because they have a high potential to be overharvested.
Lemon sharks are often found near shore in shallow water, especially in Southeast Florida, where they aggregate in large numbers each year. This makes them easy to locate and raises the potential for large numbers of lemon sharks to be removed from the population with minimal effort by fishermen.
Lemon sharks also are susceptible to overharvest because of their life history characteristics. They are slow-growing, reaching sexual maturity at 12-15 years of age, and have a low reproductive potential, producing 6 to 18 pups per litter every second or third year. Juvenile lemon sharks experience a mortality of 40-60 percent.
Recently, some preliminary data from an ongoing tagging study found that at least 7.5 percent of tagged adult lemon sharks from a Southeast Florida aggregation succumbed to fishing mortality in one season. At that rate, the entire lemon shark aggregation could be harvested in a few years.
In addition, recent regulatory actions for other shark species might put more fishing pressure on lemon sharks in Florida waters, where 90 percent of known lemon shark aggregations occur. The harvest of lemon sharks will still be allowed in offshore federal waters adjacent to state waters.Healthy lemon shark populations are especially important to Florida's dive charter industry which provides ecotourism trips to see lemon shark aggregations in the winter months.
The FWC's lemon shark rule takes effect on March 23. More information about recent shark-management actions is available online at MyFWC.com/Rules, click on "Fishing - Saltwater."
113 nations have signed on to conserve migratory shark species. This is being heralded as a landmark decision.
On the flip side we have seen this kind of thing before.
Nations banding together to work long ranging plans for animal conservation and who fall foul to enforcement issues or internal pressures from commercial fishing interests.
In short, while these announcements are always good news, the conservation world needs to radically change the way we do conservation.
Too often nation conservation consensus leads to little in the way of actual conservation, as is the case with blue fin tuna.
Good "news" for sharks does not always translate into actual protections for animals.
Volunteer anglers from all over the UK will be descending upon south west Scotland once again in an attempt to tag as many inshore sharks as possible from boats, kayaks and the shore over the three-day period 18th to 20th June.
Sharkatag is just one of the Scottish Sea Angling Conservation Network’s on going projects, aimed at highlighting the urgent need for shark, ray and skate conservation in Scottish waters and raising the public awareness of sea angling and its contribution to the economies of many coastal communities.
One of the main organizers Stuart Cresswell said. “Last years Sharkatag event was a huge success with over 200 volunteer sport fishermen catching, tagging and releasing over 200 sharks. The event received widespread publicity on prime time TV news bulletins and also benefited local businesses to a value in excess of £40,000.
"Our aim for the 2010 event is to increase participation and publicity of the event further and to clearly highlight the fact to Scotland's politicians that a live shark in the sea is actually worth over 20 times more than a dead shark on the fishmongers slab."
According to Ian Burrett, SSACN’s Projects Director the focus for this year’s Sharkatag event will be the tope shark which grows up to 100 lb. SSACN believes Luce Bay and the Solway are a breeding ground for tope, yet unlike in England and Wales, tope are not protected in Scottish waters and their numbers are dropping year by year. "We would like to be to be protected in all EU waters, but need our own Government to support that aim."
Other shark species such as rays, bull huss and smoothound will also be tagged. Scottish Shark Tagging Programme (SSTP ) tags, which carry a unique number, are carefully attached to the sharks. Details like weight, sex and length are recorded and entered on a database. When the shark is recaptured, the data can be analysed to provide evidence of species migrations, growth rates, stock populations, make-up and fluctuations.
By way of Da Shark over at the always informative Beqa Blog in Fiji photographer Mark Harding questions the roll of shark research when it conflicts with shark conservation efforts.
Mark brings up many good points in this ongoing debate on his blog at Eyemocean. Mark is an eloquent writer who distills the issues down nicely.
Call it an evolutionary thought process.
We raised an eyebrow or two over the same news reports last week.
MEXICO, Guadalupe Island, Baja California Pacific – Sea water desalination system in exchange for a 1,235-acre marine reserve for a duration of 10 years.
Guadalupe Island, with a total land area of 80,000 acres, is one of the most remote islands of Mexico. The island’s only community is mostly fishermen and their families who have been using the island for decades, fishing lobster and diving abalone. Guadalupe Island has one of the best preserved marine environments of Mexico. Since the decree in 2007 of the “Guadalupe Island Biosphere Reserve”, the management and regulated protection of its natural resources is under the federal authority of the Natural Protected Areas Commission.
Guadalupe Island is one of the best examples in the world of an ongoing island ecosystem recovery where different entities (governmental and nonprofit) are participating. A water desalination plant is the local community's most urgent need. A desalinization system will be purchased with the help of Seacology in exchange for the creation and protection of a 1,235-acre marine reserve for a period of 10 years, where fishing, extraction of resources, damage to the sea floor, contamination or any other kind of damage is forbidden.
The desalination system will be able to supply as much as 3,000 gallons per day. The water supply could also support reforestation and restoration projects, particularly in the remaining patches of endemic forest. In 2000 and 2002, Seacology funded projects to construct and maintain fences to keep invasive goats out of the most sensitive areas containing endemic plant species. Goats have since been eradicated from the island.
We hope that you are all enjoying the new year so far, and that you're as enthused as we are that it is going to be a good one.
To kick off this year's activities, we have a few volunteer opportunities in February.
Sharks in the Park
Date: Sunday, 07 February 2010 Time: 11am-3pm
Location: Portsmouth Square, SF Chinatown
Lend a hand to save some fins!
As we mentioned in our last newsletter, last year's Sharks in the Park event was a great success, and we're excited to do it again!
The consumption of shark fin soup spikes up each year during Chinese New Year celebrations. This year's Sharks in the Park event will coincide with the festivals preceding Chinese New Year, so attendance and outreach are both is expected to be larger.
We're really hoping for a big turnout on this one. Even if you can't volunteer, or even attend, please help us spread the word.
Location: Donald E. Stephens Convention Center Rosemont IL 60018
OWU is one of the premier consumer dive shows in the US. This year, COARE will have a booth there, and we'll also be giving a seminar on ocean-bound waste and our Green Diver program.
We're looking for volunteers to help staff the booth and be part of the COARE team.
If you are planning or hoping to attend the OWU show, this is a great opportunity for you. In exchange for your assistance, we'll provide admission to the show for the days you're volunteering.
Contact Christopher at 510-495-7875 or info@coare.org for more info.
Thanks, and we look forward to seeing you all soon!
Wishing you healthy oceans, - Christopher Chin
Please feel free to share this newsletter and these volunteer opportunities with friends, family, and colleagues who you think might share our passion. If you received this newsletter second hand, we encourage you to join the COARE volunteer force by sending a note to volunteer@coare.org
The Shark Legacy Project exists to protect sharks as part of the marine inheritance of all people. Founded by PADI Course Director Peter Wilcox, together with Shark Biologist Giacomo Palavicini, our research aims to assist governments in the establishment of shark sanctuaries.
Our pilot research project launched January 2010 in Roatan, in conjunction with the Roatan Marine Park and DIGIPESCA (Honduras Fisheries Department). The project combines shark diving operators in Honduras with our biologists to determine a dollar value of the sharks to tourism, and so protect them as a valuable marine resource. Recently DIGIPESCA enacted a bill establishing a complete moratorium on fishing of all shark species in Honduras until the research has completed, the government has a better idea of sharks as a resource to its people and a management plan can be established.
Victory number one was recently signed into law, now the research begins!
Want to help?
Visit www.sharklegacyproject.com and sign the petition, spread the word with the links on the site or better yet, come visit Roatan in the Bay Islands of Honduras and dive with us and the sharks!
They say big things come in small packages. In the shark world nothing is bigger then governments who enact bans on shark fishing in their waters.
Palau'srecent shark fishing ban and the Maldives decision to ban shark fishing in their waters was met with acclaim both in the tourism and shark conservation worlds.
As it turns out other governments were watching, and taking note.
Thanks in part to the Shark Legacy Project headed up by a small and dedicated team in Roatan, Honduras the government just announced they will ban all shark fishing in Honduran waters while they study the issue of shark fishing and the economics of Honduran sharks which, for a Latin American country, is a simply stunning decision.
The next steps will require resources and help from the shark tourism industry and from the research side as well to make this ban a permanent and regional example.
From Peter Wilcox Director of the Shark Legacy Project:
"Thanks Patric - have a major victory down here. After our meetings with DIGIPESCA they pushed up the passing of a bill that has now gone into practice. It puts a moratorium on the fishing of all shark species in all the waters of Honduras! Think that makes Honduras the first in the Caribbean to have a shark sanctuary! Part of the drive behind this measure was to cease use of sharks as a resource until research can be done to evaluate the population/species of sharks here. So finally, a government willing to step in before the problem gets unmanageable. We met with the government this last weekend to discuss how we can assist in this research (as you may be able to guess they do not have much in the way of funding for their own research). We are travelling to Tegucigalpa this week to discuss further research and affiliations to benefit the goals of protecting sharks here."
We would Like to congratulate the Shark Legacy Project and all those who have worked to this point to get the ban in place.
The announcement of a new multi-million dollar trade agreement between Canada and China has set the seal conservation world ablaze.
