Guy Harvey Ultimate Shark Challenge - Industry Change

Bucky Dennis. This name was synonymous with an outpouring of anger last summer as professional angler Bucky Dennis hunted down and killed a 1060lb pregnant Great Hammerhead.

The second biggest of his fishing career.

Enter the Guy Harvey Ultimate Shark Challenge and industry lead change to the perception of sport caught sharks and regional shark tournaments.

Shark conservation initiatives take many forms and are often lead by industry leaders willing to step out from traditional molds to create new conservation paradigms. The team behind the GHUSC are a unique group of thinkers and industry folks, from Mote Marine Labs, The Humane Society, to well known oceans advocate Guy Harvey who are trying to change the way we catch sharks, run tournaments, and ultimately treat the resource as a sustainable effort.

After three decades of protests and efforts to educate fishermen, shark kill tournaments are still the tournament of choice in the sport fishing industry.

Having Bucky Dennis become an early adopter and ambassador for this new kind of shark tournament is a good first start.

Controversial? You bet.

With recent dead sharks washing up again on beaches in Florida (great coverage) attributed by conservationists to "shark fishing from shore" the need for some sort of industry change is now. This effort is the first of what will inevitably be a series of efforts to change the sport caught shark model, evolving, and educating along the way.

As we have long said. Shark conservation begins with "One."

One person. One idea. One initiative at a time.

Full coverage.

Shark conservation proposal defeated at UN meeting - No surprise

China, Japan and Russia helped defeat a U.S. endorsed proposal at a U.N. wildlife trade meeting Tuesday that would have boosted conservation efforts for sharks - is anyone surprised?

We have long been advocates of regional and commercial efforts to conserve sharks.

Some of the most effective recent campaigns have been targeted at the commercial sector like Alibaba.com who, under sustained media pressure, targeting partners in the USA eventually banned B to B sharks fins sales on their massive trade portal.

This is shark conservation for the new decade.

It is unfortunate that the latest meetings in Doha netted little for sharks but if the shark conservation world is serious about conserving these animals we'll have to do it with regional efforts. A prime example of how to do it can be found with Beqa Adventure Divers in Fiji and elsewhere.

It's not rocket science but it is a science, and it does take dedication beyond Facebook postings, and the tired litany of other high profile yet ultimately useless "save the" campaigns that are embedded in our digital age.

Commercial shark fin operators are out on the waters every day finning the animals we profess to care about. Meanwhile the shark conservation world works from laptops and web pages, producing PowerPoint presentations and statistics for disinterested government officials when boots on the ground efforts are what are really needed.

Real and lasting change comes from ownership in the same animals that the commercial sector currently claims as their own.

It's a radical thought, but as Doha has once and for all demonstrated to the shark conservation world, we cannot expect big government and business interests to make the changes necessary to conserve wildlife.

That legacy belongs to those who create safe havens for sharks, smart regional conservation efforts, and to those who shut down supply chain - now.

Guadalupe Conservation Fund - Shark Operators

In 2006 the idea of the Isla Guadalupe Conservation Fund was hatched by a group of forward thinking shark diving operators, and shortly after Shark Diver created and launched the non profit website and outreach efforts at Guadalupefund.org

Today the fund continues to generate much needed money for new and ongoing Mexican lead shark research.

Support shark diving operations that support shark research.

Your dollars go towards shark conservation and detailed understanding of local shark populations through science.

The operators on the front lines of tagging and tracking shark research and support for the past 7 years at Isla Guadalupe are the following. These are the operations who have consistently donated time, money, and energy towards local sharks well beyond their commercial side:

Shark Diver
Islander Charters
Horizon Charters
Nautilus Explorer

Shark Free Marinas - Empowering Change

Shark conservation has been described as a million ants taking down an Elephant. Regular folks taking on the responsibility to lift their phones and make a call for change, or send an email for change to enact shark conservation policy.

It works.

In so many cases from Alibaba.com to the recent House Bill in the US Senate thousands of shark lovers reached out to effect those changes - the million ants taking down an Elephant.

At it's heart that is the power behind the Shark Free Marinas Initiative, you.

The Initiative gives you the tools you need to make lasting and immediate shark conservation change in your region. Not a petition, but actual online tools to send to your local marinas, local news outlets and local government agencies.

Change begins when you see something you feel compelled to act on - a dead shark strung up at a local marina is what got this initiative started in the Bahamas and two locals took up the banner - Duncan Brake and Jillian Morris. Through them and their remarkable efforts the Bimini Sands Marina became the first in the region to go "shark free" and this was while the SFMI website was still in development.

Join us. Shark Conservation starts locally, you make those changes to save sharks - the initiative will give you the tools you need to be successful and actually start saving sharks this week.

Change begins with you. Now and forever. Welcome to the Shark Free Marinas Initiative.

Ft.Myers Beach - Positive Change

The shark conservation movement has often been described as a "thousand ants taking down an elephant".

In the past two years some long lasting and precedent setting victories from Alibaba.com to the recent decision by the Maldives to ban all shark fishing has been attributed to this army of shark conservationists.

It all starts with "One". One idea, one blog, one website, one initiative.

"One".

Recently this army trained their sights on the "Are You Man Enough?" shark tournament in Ft Myers Beach, Fl. The resulting media, websites, blog posts, and phone calls stirred local politicians to effect rapid and precedent setting change.

The tournament will no longer feature dead trophy sharks which is a win. Instead catch and release will allow sharks to be fished sustainably.

Tracking this shark conservation army back here are some of the posts that made for this change alerting media and others to pick up phones and start making calls.

Kudos to all who made this change. Here's a short list and by no means complete:

Shark Safe Rally - The "One"

Oceanic Dreams

Neil Hammerschlag

Chum Slick

Loves Sharks

Underwater Times

Care2 Networks

Southern Fried Science

Dive Photo Guide

Scuba Board

Charity News

Beqa Adventure Divers

Florida Blog

The list of news outlets who followed this story lent a lot credibility to this effort. The final summation came from Gary and Brenda Adkison who wrapped up this change nicely.

"Mark The Shark" - Buffalo Hunter

Bison were hunted almost to extinction in the 19th century. They were hunted for their skins, with the rest of the animal left behind to decay in the hot sun of the American plains.

At one point from 1870-84 long kill trains packed with drunken "day hunters" wound through seemingly unlimited plains herds shooting as many animals as over heated gun barrels would allow.

The Bison were quickly reduced to a few hundred animals from millions in just a few years.

Who were these men? What was the early 19th century mindset that allowed for millions of dead and dying animals to litter the American plains?

You need look no further than Miami and a fellow by the name of "Mark The Shark" - he is by definition a modern day Buffalo Hunter - killing breeding aged animals for the sport while leaving the carcass to rot after the film crews and onlookers have gone home.

While latter day Buffalo Hunters thought their resource would never end "Mark The Shark" knows all too well the state of today's oceans. His motivations for killing sharks, one might argue, is a bit more sinister.

Marketing.

By killing a displaying a 12 foot 1000lb Tiger shark in Miami recently "Mark The Shark" leverages free advertising and books more fishermen. Modern day Shark Hunters who pay to repeat an act from the past.

Buffalo hunting ended when we ran out of animals to shoot. Today the thought of killing a 12 foot Tiger shark expressly for snapping a few images or to promote ones business is completely out of step with where people and the evolution of wild care are going. The world has changed.

At one point in history someone must have seen the last Buffalo kill train leaving the station to the great American plains and thought "enough is enough".

To "Mark The Shark" we say enough is enough - unlike the Buffalo Hunters of times past who shot to kill, Marks business can practice "catch, tag and release". The choice is his to make, as opposition to dead, breeding aged animals left rotting in the hot Florida sun grows.

Shark Free Marinas - Official Website

For Immediate Release

Tuesday 19th May, 2009

Shark-Free Marina Initiative to reduce worldwide shark mortality

www.sharkfreemarinas.com

Shark- Free Marinas has a singular purpose, to reduce worldwide shark mortality. Today the not-for-profit company launches its strategy which intends to prevent the deaths of millions of vulnerable and endangered species of shark. The initiative aims to win over the fishing community by working with game fishing societies, tackle manufacturers, competition sponsors and marinas to form community conscious policy.

In the last five years over a half million sharks on average were harvested annually by the recreational and sport-fishing community in the United States alone. Many of these were breeding age animals and belong to vulnerable or endangered species. Research has shown that removal of adult sharks from the population is occurring at such an extreme rate that many species stand no chance of survival, severely damaging the delicate ecological balance of the oceans ecosystem.

“There’s a lot of talk about the atrocity of shark fining and fishing worldwide” says the SFMI’s Board Director, Marine Biologist Luke Tipple “but not a lot of measurable action towards reversing the damage. The time has come to stop simply ‘raising awareness’ and start implementing sensible management techniques to protect vulnerable species of sharks from inevitable destruction.”

The Shark-Free Marina Initiative works by prohibiting the landing of any caught shark at a participating marina. By promoting catch-and-release fishing the sport of shark fishing can actively participate in ongoing research studies and collect valuable data. The initiative is based on the Atlantic billfish model which banned the mortal take of billfish in response to population crashes in the 80’s.

“Although the number of sharks killed by recreational fishermen each year is dwarfed by commercial catches, the current crisis facing shark stocks requires action wherever possible.” says marine scientist and SFMI Advisor Edd Brooks “We are not asking fishermen to stop fishing, only asking them to start releasing their catch.”

Collaborating with the Cape Eleuthera Institute in the Bahamas and the Fisheries Conservation Foundation in the USA the SFMI has had an early impact with interest from marinas and non-profits nation-wide. Currently Shark-Free Marinas is able to subsidize the cost of signs and literature but hope that future investment will help make a nationwide impact.

“Shark-Free Marinas is a necessary response to the culture of mature shark harvest” says Tipple “Our effect will be immediate, measurable and, together with saving millions of sharks, will establish a new global standard for responsible ocean management.”

Visit the Shark-Free Marina website at www.sharkfreemarinas.com or contact the Director at staff@sharkfreemarinas.com

Sonja Fordham Wants Your Signature

Sonja Fordham is Ocean Conservancy's Shark Conservation Program Director. We have talked about her in the past and the simply fantastic NGO she represents.

These guys do shark conservation and have our full support.

So, when Sonja puts out a call for a few electronic signatures we're more than happy to help because we know at the end of the day it will. Please join Sonja and her team in making a difference:

I'm Sonja Fordham, Ocean Conservancy's Shark Conservation Program Director, and I'm talking about "finning" the practice of slicing off a shark’s valuable fins for soup and tossing the body back to sea.

If you're like me, the thought of it makes you outraged and eager to end it. Me, I've dedicated almost two decades to conserving sharks. You, I just need you to urge your senators to pass the Shark Conservation Act of 2009 right now.

The bill, which already passed in the House of Representatives last March, is needed to end the practice of shark finning in US waters and to step up shark conservation efforts in other countries. The US passed a national finning ban in 2000, but the practice continues and is still legal in many other nations. The demand for the fins, which can sell for up to hundreds of dollars per pound, remains high for shark fin soup, an Asian delicacy.

The Shark Conservation Act of 2009 closes loopholes in the US finning ban and can revitalize shark conservation efforts on a global scale. It must be passed without further delay.Please join me, and the thousands of other Ocean Conservancy supporters, by sending a powerful message to your senators.

A growing number of shark populations are in peril from overfishing and unsustainable finning — we must do better. Prohibiting the removal of shark fins at sea takes the guesswork out of determining if sharks were finned and greatly improves the ability of experts to accurately record the shark species taken. This bill can end the waste of these vulnerable animals and will contribute to our knowledge of shark population health and conservation needs.

When the passionate support of people like you combines with our policy expertise, we can end harmful fishing practices and turn the tide for sharks. We can end the wasteful practice of shark finning. Working together, we can save our sharks.

Thank you for all that you do to fight for a healthy and diverse ocean,

Sonja Fordham
Shark Conservation Program Director
Ocean Conservancy

Sen John Kerry - Sharks

Let's face it, he would have made a terrible president, but as an advocate for sharks we like him a lot.

This week Sen John Kerry introduced a bill - The Shark Conservation Act, to the senate following the houses o.k that will hopefully slow down shark takes in US waters:

Bill Number: H.R. 81/S. 850
Bill Status: Passed House
Bill Sponsor(s): Rep. Madeleine Bordallo (D-GU), Sen. John Kerry (D-MA)
Legislature Status: In Session

To protect sharks from the cruel practice of shark finning (cutting off sharks' fins and throwing the sharks back in the water, often while still alive). Congress banned this practice in 2000, but enforcement is complex and there is room for cheating. This legislation closes a loophole that currently permits a vessel to transport fins obtained illegally as long as the sharks were not finned aboard that vessel.

Editors Note: The Humane Society USA has been following this issue closely.