Shark attacks in Hawaiian waters
HONOLULU (HAWAII)- A 61-year old man from Oregan, USA, was bitten on the leg by a tiger shark last week in off Kihei, Hawaii. He was the fourth victim of shark bites in the past few weeks in Hawaiian waters. Hawaiian experts are still guessing why there have been soContinue Reading
Interview with Shark Ranger
RAJA AMPAT (INDONESIA)- In 2005 conservationists and local villagers in the remote Indonesian archipelago of Raja Ampat worked together to create the Misool Eco Resort and Conservation Center, establishing a 165-square-mile “No-Take Zone” that banned fishing. These faraway islands in Western Papua, regarded by many marine experts as having theContinue Reading
EU: Definite no to shark finning
BRUSSELS (BELGIUM)- Finally shark finning is complety banned from European waters. The European parliament last Thursday called a definitive halt to the long contested practice of fishermen slicing off fins and throwing the live mutilated sharks overboard to drown. Shark finning was prohibited by the EU already in 2003 butContinue Reading
More research on shark attacks Australia
PERTH (AUSTRALIA)- Is tossing dead sheep into the ocean the reason for the exceptional high number of shark attacks off the coast of Western Australia this past year? Concerned conservationists have called for more research on this potential link between attacks on humans and dead sheep thrown into the oceanContinue Reading
Petition for Porbeagle Protection
OTTAWA (CANADA)- Friends of Hector have started a petition to urge Canada into protecting the endangered porbeagle sharks. It is the only country on the Atlantic ocean directly targeting this shark and is allowing thousands to be caught as ‘bycatch’ in fisheries for other fish. Over 17.000 people signed already.Continue Reading
Shark fins off Singapore menus
SINGAPORE (SINGAPORE)- More and more more organisations in Singapore are saying ‘no’ to shark fin soup on the menu. At least two government ministries have said no. Others have taken their own initiative renounce the consumption of shark fin products. The campaign by Shark Savers Singapore is gaining ground. SinceContinue Reading
Bad news hurts shark conservation
MICHIGAN (USA)- Traditionally, sharks are portrayed in a negative way in media coverage. More than 52 percent of global coverage focuses on shark attacks, and in 60 percent of coverage, sharks are portrayed negatively. A new study from Michigan State University reveals that this negative image is affecting theirContinue Reading