The global event “Shark Conservation in a Changing World” was held via Zoom in March 2021. I especially enjoyed this event because it gave me a chance to learn more about sharks and actively think about other related global issues. Dr. Catherine Macdonald, who had 14 years of research and fieldwork experience with sharks from the University of Miami, explored the topic of shark conservation and taught us about solving environmental problems.
Many species of sharks are facing elevated risk of extinction in recent years, but shark conservation has been progressing slowly because of the uncertainty, the long time scales, and people’s different perspectives on the issue. I learned that the reason why sharks are so vulnerable is because sharks mostly use “K-selected” reproductive strategies, meaning they have fewer offspring and late maturity age. Unlike other bony fish, once overly hunted, sharks are not able to maintain their population. Looking at a larger scale, every species plays an essential role in the ecological balance and the food chain. Sharks can be both “apex predators” and “mesopredators,” so the extinction of sharks would lead to serious damage to the environment as well. However, there are many data gaps in the study of sharks, which adds the uncertainty and complexity of the situation. Information such as reproduction and mating time, prey selection, habitat use, and shark hunters’ catch rates are still unknown. Unsustainable fishing and shark finning are the main threats to sharks. I learned that shark finning and shark fishing are two different things. Shark finning is the process of cutting off the fins and discarding the rest of the shark at sea. Shark fishing is making use of the whole body of the shark including the fins and the meat-- this is less harmful to the shark population. Another important factor to consider is that some people’s lives depend on fishing sharks, so it is definitely inappropriate to simply make shark fishing illegal. Instead, we should work on how to make the laws regarding shark fishing both sustainable and reasonable. “Well-managed shark fishing will not have a negative impact on shark populations,” as Dr. Macdonald said.
Media, again, appears in shark conversations. Media serves to reveal the true situation to people around the world and those who are not aware of the issues; it also shapes people’s perception and attitudes towards the issues. However, for shark conservation, I believe that the media has more to do. Dr. Macdonald mentioned the “Jaws effect.” The movie Jaws provoked fear by portraying sharks as mindless eating machines. There are newspapers that deliberately added sharp teeth on a picture of a shark to make it more eye-shocking. Indeed, when we think of sharks, a picture of a fearsome animal with sharp teeth would appear in our minds, but this is inaccurate, and this perception blocks shark conservation. Media should present authentic and unbiased information and publish more educational posts and articles about sharks to diminish the fear people have for sharks. Then they could fully understand and be willing to help.
Dr. Macdonald also mentioned racism and classism in conservation and advocated the idea that “blame” is not an useful way in solving the problems and the problems are not caused by one single group of people, not the fisher alone, the shark businesses alone, or the consumers alone can lead to the current global issue. I really appreciate Dr. Macdonald mentioning this. It is crucial to work together and stop blaming each other when we try to cope with global issues. For example, climate change and COVID-19. Instead of trying to blame the country which didn’t fulfill the UN carbon emission targets and countries which caused the pandemic or didn’t react swiftly enough to save more people, we should face the problems together. It is not a one person problem, it is a global problem.
Thanks to the inspiring presentation by Dr. Macdonald. While learning so much more about sharks and the dilemma they are facing, I learned that global issues are far more complex than we think and there are many aspects of the issues that we need to consider and negotiate. For shark conservation, we can contribute by picking garbage at beaches and riversides and spreading awareness of this topic in our communities. Joining a field study school and learning how to closely interact with sharks can be another meaningful thing to do when we grow older. Also, it is important for us, the future leaders, to dig deep into each global conversation. What we believe to be true and what we see mostly from the internet might not present the whole picture of the issues. When facing other global issues, don’t just ask what should be changed, ask what you can change; start from the premise there’s no bad guy; remember to work together, and that there is no silver bullet.