Shark Finning Effects and Alternatives

Conclusion

• People like Chef Corey Lee have created an alternative to eating shark fin have just lessened the consumption of shark fin. Alternatives like that are often cheaper, healthier, and don’t kill huge numbers of sharks. Most sharks today that are brought in to the United States’ ports are used for their meat more than they are used for the fin. Banning shark finning is only the first step to making any sort of impact on lessening the amount of shark deaths humans are responsible for.
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• There are also now ways for researchers to analyze the DNA in the shark fin. These researchers can take a DNA samples of the shark fin and find out what type of shark they were, what area that shark was from and then determine the greater concentrations of those shark finning areas. By determining those greater concentrations, limits can be placed on those countries for the amount of sharks they can kill and that DNA sample can be used to catch poachers. Furthering the education of the barbaric ways of shark finning and placing limits on the amount of shark finning can make shark finning less of a problem. If all of the world would work together to stop this, then the world won’t have to face the problematic effects of having no sharks at all.

Effects of Shark Finning

• Since some species of sharks are decreasing, other species of their prey are increasing. For example, since the smooth hammerhead species’ population is decreasing, their prey, rays, have increased. Since the ray population is increasing more of what they eat which are scallops, clams and other bivalves are decreasing. Sharks are also valuable for enticing vacationers for ecotourism. According to Caty Fairclough from the Smithsonian of National Museum of Natural History, “One estimate for hammerhead sharks suggests that a live shark, over the course of its lifetime, is worth $1.6 million, which is a great deal higher than the $200 the dead shark can sell for.”.

Introduction

"Health Benefits"

Sharks were known for being the hunters and the main feared predator of the ocean. Now the main predator of the ocean's population is rapidly decreasing due to the greed of human beings. Humans are killing sharks for their valuable fns that are also allegedly health beneficial. Removing a shark's fins and throwing the shakrs back into the ocean is the cruel practice of shark finning.

• There are also people that think banning shark finning puts an end to shark fin soup, therefore denying the people of the medicinal benefits of the soup. Some people make a variety of claims that includes that shark fin soup can expand a person's lifetime. A shark’s fin is made out of cartilage, which doesn’t have any benefits at all. Actually, shark’s fins are high in mercury that is known for causing nerve damage and brain damage. Also the way the fisheries dry out the fin for selling purposes actually concentrates the mercury. The California State Office of Environmental Health Assessment has tested sharks from the San Francisco Bay and suggests that the people do not eat any part of the sharks.
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Endangerment of Sharks

Origin of Shark Finning

• Unfortunately though, there is more than one other reason to stop the continuation of this practice. 100 million sharks are killed all around the world every year. According to Doctor Demian Chapman of Stony Brook University, "There is a really razor-thin level of mortality that sharks can experience before their population trajectory be - that is really what's been happening.” At the rate the world is going with shark mortality, they will soon be extinct. Doctor Chapman also states: "They are not reproducing fast enough to keep up with the rate we are pulling them out of the ocean,". Many shark species like the scalloped hammerhead are already endangered due to shark finning that will soon be extinct.

• Sharks are often targeted for their fins because they are very valuable both culturally and money wise. These shark fins are commonly used for the popular dish called shark fin soup. Back then, Chinese Emperors would often serve this dish to their honored guests because they were believed to have health benefits and show the bravery in tackling a shark. The popularity of shark fin soup has then grown with the population of China causing major demand for fisherman to go out and bring back the key ingredient.

• Fishermen partake in shark finning for huge amount of money a shark fin is worth. Shark fins are commonly sold for 500$ per pound. Fishermen dump the body back into the ocean because the body is less valuable than the fin. Also if those fishermen carry the body, they waste space on the boat that could hold more fins of greater value. The downside to throwing the finned shark back though is that is kills the shark in an inhumane way of suffocation and/or blood loss.

Shark Finning Effects and Alternatives

By Sydney Gragg