Pacific Islands shark and ray policy brief = Requin et raie des iles du Pacifique : note d'orientation

Abstract

While management of tuna and other commercial fish stocks is not core business for SPREP, maintenance of a productive oceanic ecosystem and conservation of threatened and migratory species clearly is core business, which is why SPREP has prepared this Policy Brief dealing with conservation of shark and ray populations. The aim of this Brief is to summarise the status and trends of shark and ray species in the Pacific islands region, and to provide advice on their conservation to PICT governments. In their role as apex predators, sharks are keystone species in Pacific island ecosystems. The seemingly insatiable demand for shark fins in China and North Asia, however, has led to a huge increase in shark catches in the past 25 years. Because many species of sharks are long-lived and slow-breeding, producing only a few offspring each year, the impacts of increased fishing pressure have been very severe for many species, and concerns have been repeatedly expressed about the status and trends of