saw an opportunity to market a new 

 catch. Lloyd Davidson of Morehead 

 City was one of the first fishermen to 

 long-line for sharks in coastal and 

 deep-sea waters. The stocks seemed 

 plentiful and the future bright for this 

 emerging fishery. 



But no one predicted the number 

 of fishermen and boats that would flock 

 to this new fishery. It quickly became 

 apparent that shark populations were 

 vulnerable to overfishing due to their 

 biology. Sharks were being caught 

 faster than they could reproduce. 

 These animals have few pups and a 

 long gestation period. Depending on 

 the species, it can take 10 to 20 years 

 for females to reach sexual maturity. 

 Soon, many fishermen noticed the 

 most obvious sign of overharvesting — 

 shark catch declined even with in- 

 creased fishing effort. This was 

 most evident in the Gulf of Mexico. 



In the late 1980s, Taiwanese 

 demand for shark fin soup raised the 

 stakes for shark fishing. Fishermen 

 remove the preferred fins: the two 

 pectoral fins, the front dorsal fin and 

 the lower lobe of the tail fin. The fins 

 are dried and shipped overseas for 

 further processing. Fin preparation is 

 a labor-intensive process that removes 

 the skin and flesh from the fins, leaving 

 strands of cartilage called "noodles." 

 Larger fins require less labor, and the 

 resulting "noodles" are preferred by 

 Chinese chefs and diners. 



In 1990, when out-of-state vessels 

 concentrated effort in North Carolina's 

 offshore waters, local watermen 

 requested a management strategy that 

 would limit shark harvest to preserve 

 the fishery. Most sharks are caught in 

 federally controlled waters beyond the 

 three-mile state jurisdiction. In 1984, 

 NMFS developed a management plan 

 that was finally enacted in April 1993. 

 But the management plan is still being 

 discussed and refined because of 

 problems allocating shark resources 

 among multiple users. The plan is also 

 in flux because some scientists believe 

 that sharks may be near depletion or 



D. Taylo, 



Fishermen assess a great white. 



economic extinction. 



Shark fins, particularly the large 

 ones, are 20 times more valuable than 

 the meat. Stories are told of fishermen 

 keeping the fins but discarding the 

 bodies. Others describe the practice of 

 slicing off fins and tossing the helpless 

 live fish back into the sea. However, 

 the practice is rare. Sharks are just 

 not numerous enough to justify a "fin 

 only" trip since the ratio of fin to 

 body weight is only about 5 percent. 

 Besides being illegal, simple econom- 

 ics should discourage this practice. 

 To reduce the exploitation of sharks 

 for their valuable fins, NMFS has 

 limited the number of fins allowed on 

 a fishing vessel to 5 percent of the total 

 shark carcass weight on board a vessel. 



Fishery management plans depend 

 on mathematical models of reported 

 catch to make predictions of approxi- 

 mate harvest. Models based on partial 

 data result in weak predictions. 

 Numbers are skewed when sharks 

 taken through bycatch, incidental 

 catch and unreported catch are 

 missing from the equation. 



The operative principle is based 

 on regulating total catch. The total 

 allowable shark harvest is set at 5.8 



million pounds of carcass weight per 

 year. This amount is divided into two 

 seasons — one opens Jan. 1 and the 

 other, July 1 . Each season closes when 

 its quota, or half the harvest portion, is 

 reached. Therefore, the termination date 

 of the season varies. NMFS management 

 plans try to regulate the fishery and 

 gather more data. Regulations require 

 shark fishermen working in federal 

 waters to have a permit and to sell only 

 to permitted dealers. Fishermen must 

 also adhere to prescribed seasons and 

 catch limits. These regulations apply 

 from Maine to the Gulf of Mexico and 

 portions of the Carribbean. 



The number of sharks taken by 

 recreational anglers is limited to four 

 per vessel for large coastal and pelagic 

 sharks daily. Five small coastal sharks 

 can be caught per person per day. 

 The large coastal species include 

 sandbar, blacktip, dusky and tiger 

 sharks. Pelagic species include mako 

 and thresher sharks. And the small 

 coastal species include Atlantic 

 sharpnose and blacknose. 



The N.C. Division of Marine 

 Fisheries has declined to follow the 

 federal plans within state waters. 

 October is the prime season for sharks 

 here, coinciding with increased 

 migration in this area. The federal 

 season is typically closed by then. 

 However, the N.C. Division of Marine 

 Fisheries director may, by proclamation, 

 impose restrictions in the shark fishery. 

 At present, the state limits the percentage 

 of fins on a vessel to 7 percent of total 

 carcass weight. Dried fins are also 

 prohibited on board. Nonfederally 

 permitted fishermen are allowed to 

 fish for sharks in state waters regardless 

 of the federal seasons, but they can sell 

 their catch only to dealers who are not 

 federally permitted. 



The success of federal management 

 plans is still under evaluation. The quota 

 may need adjustment. The season dura- 

 tion may need regional accommodation. 

 Also, more information is needed to 

 understand variations on shark recruit- 

 ment, including reproductive success. □ 



12 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 1996 



