Save Shark Sunday

Each year, 100 MILLION sharks are massacred for their fins. More often than not, the finning takes place at sea. The fins and tail are chopped off and the trunk is thrown overboard and the animal is left to drown. 

In some areas, shark populations have dropped by as much as 90%.1/3 of ALL shark species are facing extinction, many within our life time. Sharks play a critical role in maintaining the fragile balance in our worlds oceans. The fins do not add flavour to the soup, which is a type of chicken broth. Neither do they hold any nutritional value. The fins are added to provide texture.


YOU can help get shark-fin soup off the menu by signing THIS PETITION which I will personally deliver to the owners and management of Johannesburg restaurant Lai Lai Garden. 


Thanks 


Pat

Shark Finning in Mozambique

The scenes in this clip were all shot on location in Mozambique with the use of hidden cameras. It is estimated that up to 100 million sharks are butchered for their fins each year, mostly to satisfy a Chinese market for shark fin soup. The fins do not add flavour, which is a type of chicken broth. Neither do they hold any nutritional value. The fins are added to provide texture. 


1/3 of all shark species are facing extinction, many within our lifetime. Sharks play a critical role in maintaining the fragile balance in our worlds oceans. It is a slap in the face to all concerned citizens that shark fin soup be allowed to be served in public restaurants.  


YOU can send out a petition to Lai Lai Garden, a restaurant in Johannesburg, South Africa asking them to remove shark fin soup from their menu. Simply click HERE  

Shark Finning –

Shark fin, sea cucumber exports banned in Marshalls

Finned shark

MAJURO — Escalating worry about illegal shark fin and sea cucumber exports prompted the Marshall Islands to ban trade in both marine products on Wednesday this week.

Marshall Islands Marine Resources Authority Director Glen Joseph announced Wednesday a moratorium on the trade in and export of shark fins and sea cucumbers following reports of expanding illegal export operations in the Marshall Islands.  

The fisheries department’s board of directors voted to place a moratorium on the trade of these two marine products until new procedures are in place to regulate them effectively, Joseph said.

“No one is registered and authorized to fish for sharks, but there are substantive reports that it is happening,” Joseph said.

Sea Cucumbers drying out

The same situation is occurring with sea cucumbers, he said. “Any company involved is required to register and get authorization from the Marshall Islands Marine Resources Authority to export sea cucumbers,” Joseph said. But MIMRA officials recently discovered a half-full container loaded with sea cucumbers waiting for export. “We fined the company $10,000 for violating the law,” Joseph said.

In the mid-2000s, the Marshall Islands licensed shark fishing, but after two years, the company fishing for sharks called it quits. According to fisheries officials, many local fishermen sell shark fins to Majuro-based companies for export to Asia. But Joseph said he hopes the new moratorium will shut this down.

The problem with Marshall Islands law relating to marine products is that there are no specifics for regulating the harvest of sea cucumbers, Joseph said. Key issues such as the size that can be harvested and periods during which harvesting is allowed are not spelled out.

“So MIMRA has instituted a moratorium on sea cucumber trade until we develop a management plan,” Joseph said.

Experts from the Secretariat of the Pacific Community are visiting Majuro next week to work with MIMRA on developing a national sea cucumber plan.

Save Shark Sunday

• Not all species of sharks are required to be in continuous motion to breathe
• A shark’s teeth are usually replaced every eight days.
• Some species of sharks shed about 30,000 teeth in their lifetime.
• As sharks never get cancer, their cartilage is being studied in the hope of developing anti-cancer drugs
• The Whale shark is considered the biggest fish in the world
• The Basking shark is the second largest, it is as long as 40 feet.
• The Pygmy shark is about 11 inches in length
• The Dwarf shark is as tiny as you hand, while some Whale sharks are as large as a bus
• The Dogfish sharks are so named, because they attack their prey like a pack of wild dogs
• Great white sharks can grow about 10 inches every year, thus, they grow to mature lengths of 12 to 14 feet
• Up to 100 MILLION sharks are killed each year for shark fin soup. By contrast, less than 50 people are killed by sharks each year!

Shark Finning

Shark finning… yet another barbaric practice to get your blood boiling. It is estimated that up to 100 MILLION sharks are killed each year for their fins.

The shocking point to this is that a bowl of Shark Fin Soup can cost as much as $150. There is ZERO nutritional value, the taste is mainly from the broth and the fin is added simply to provide texture.


What is really tragic is the fact that the shark gets hauled on board a ship, has its fins sliced off and then is tossed back into the sea and left to drown.

This is the reality of shark finning.

With the Chinese New Year, there has been an inevitable increase in demand for shark fin soup. Although culture is a wonderful thing, there are times when it clouds our judgment and becomes detrimental to the environment. I urge you to PLEASE not order this dish. Inform others, make wise decisions and play an active role in securing the future for all to enjoy. For more info and a list of petitions, click HERE!

Great White more threatened than tigers!!

Great White Shark, taken off Gansbaai, SouthAfrica. Amazing shot! I am hoping to do a cage dive soon. Will let you know how it went of course. Damn! I am looking forward to it. 
The one thing that really scares me is not the multiple rows of around 3000 teeth. Not at all. The thing that really terrifies me is the fact that these apex predators from the ocean are more threatened than tigers! Yup, you read that correctly. More threatened than tigers!
Like tigers, great whites are a top predator and, like tigers, they have suffered in recent years from habitat destruction and hunting. But unlike tigers, great white sharks get little public sympathy, said Dr Ronald O’Dor, senior scientist at the Census of Marine Life, a 10-year study into ocean wildlife.
An article in The Guardian mentions that the number of Great White sharks has dropped to an alarming 3500. This is really frightening, especially when one considers that the demand for shark fin soup has risen steeply over the last few years. Popular movies, such as Peter Benchley’s “Jaws” where these creatures are portrayed as villains don’t help one iota. 
We need to take drastic action. Seriously. Boycott all restaurants selling shark-fin soup. The damn dish has no nutritional value at all and is not doing the environment any good.
On a more positive note, the USA have taken a step in the right direction, and are now at the forefront of shark conservation. The US Senate recently passed the Shark Conservation Act, which bolsters the prohibition of shark-finning in US waters. If you would like to know more about this you can click HERE