Commercial Shark Fishing in the Caribbean Area 53 



As an indication of the return which may be expected, 

 the following is the latest quotation from the Ocean 

 Leather Corporation: 



"The present market price of the first grade fins is 

 70 cents per pound and of the second grade fins 15 

 cents to 25 cents per pound, f.o.b., New York. The 

 second grade fins are the smaller size fins and those 

 which are not properly trimmed and dried. At pres- 

 ent there is a strong demand for Shark Fins and we 

 are in a position to dispose of them at favorable 

 prices, promptly." 



It should be noted that there is a considerable demand 

 for shark fins by the Chinese residents of the Caribbean. 

 The prices that can be obtained locally should be investi- 

 gated. 



Part 2. Teeth 



Good-sized, sound sharks' teeth and sharks' jaws and 

 backbones, either merely cleaned or made into novelty 

 items, have always been in demand by tourists. While 

 these novelty items are obviously not a reason for shark 

 fishing, it takes little trouble to make extra profit from 

 them once the shark has been caught for other purposes. 



According to the most recent quotation from the 

 Ocean Leather Corporation, good-sized sound sharks' 

 teeth sell for 50 cents (United States) per 100. Since a 

 fair-sized Leopard Shark may yield from 150 to 200 

 sound teeth from its seven rows, you will receive from 

 $1.50 to $2.00 (United States) from the teeth alone. In 

 some species of sharks, however, the teeth are too small 

 to be of any value. They are also often decayed and 

 teeth in back rows are often hollow. 



Teeth can easily be removed by boiling the jaws for 

 a short time in water to which a small amount of caustic 

 soda has been added. 



