Sharks

Benefits of Sharks

The following are not listed in any particular order.

Clean Up Crew

They work diligently as the oceans clean-up crew with most species cleaning up carcasses or hunting sick or injured prey. These are important tasks that help reduce disease by cleaning up the environment, and removing sick animals from the biome.

Indicator Species

Sharks also serve as indicator species: Where there are many sharks, you will find a healthy ecosystem. These biomes include ocean reefs and seagrass meadows.


Dangers to Sharks

The following are not listed in any particular order.

Fishing

Persecution, Fishing, and Ghost Gear

Unfortunately humans have given sharks a bad reputation, leading to intentional hunting. On top of general persecution, they also suffer from cruel practices such as finning (removing their fins while still alive an conscious, then dumping them into the ocean where they sink and die slowly). Even when they aren't specifically hunted, thousands end up tangled in fishing nets and ghost gear, which also causes slow, painful deaths.

Pollution

Habitat Loss

Destruction of reefs and seagrass meadows impact sharks and many other species.

Solutions

This section is organized (to the best of our ability) from greatest to least impactful.

Reduce Seafood Industry Impact

The fishing industry has one of the greatest impacts on our oceans, depleting many keystone species that sharks rely on for survival, but also including sharks and their relatives.

Ghost gear from the fishing industry also overlaps with the plastic danger to sharks, as ghost gear makes up the majority of plastic pollution in some parts of the ocean. By switching to less impactful foods like kelp and seaweed, we can help sequester carbon, increasing habitat for small fish and other species in the process, instead of continuing the currently unsustainable levels of damage caused by fishing and shark hunting.

Science & Education

Misinformation and mystery surrounding sharks has led to much of their persecution, so helping the public understand the importance of sharks, can help when it comes to gaining legal protections and law enforcement that can help protect these wonderful creatures.

Citizen Science

Citizen science allows the public (including children) to engage in science on a practical level. This can expand their understanding about important subjects, and help scientists, universities, and other organizations to gather data in order to (in this case) help sharks or even advocate for new laws to protect them. 

Ocean-Friendly Gardens & Infrastructure

Run off from land can pollute our oceans with many dangerous chemicals as well as nutrients that can cause toxic algae blooms or deoxygenation. To prevent this we can use sustainable drainage practices and reduce pollution from land ranging from massive farms to tiny gardens.

Community & Farm-Scale Infrastructure

Riparian borders help keep pollutants including pesticides and livestock manure out of waterways, which in turn help protect our oceans.

Sustainable drainage systems can be small or large scale. You can start by digging swales in approrpiate areas or creating rain gardens in your garden. Farms and communities can make use of larger amounts of water, which also protects against future droughts and preventing or reducing local flooding. At the watershed scale, communities can work together to create large networks that protect their entire region from flooding, droughts, and pollution run off with sustainable drainage elements.

Shark-Friendly Bathrooms

Toilets (or lack of them) contributes to the sewage pollution that harms ocean ecosystems around the world. Even cruise ships and countries that have old sewage systems contribute to sewage waste that sickens coral and can carry infections to other wildlife.

Upgrading sewage systems and switching to alternative toilets such as water-free toilets can all help protect wildlife including sharks.

Shark-Friendly Gardens

Anyone from an individual with a balcony to a school or community with some green space can help protect our oceans by making ocean-friendly gardening choices.

Click the following buttons to lean how to avoid common landscaping pollutants and pesticides while you create your own ocean-friendly garden.

Shark-Friendly Rooftops

Resources

Citizen Science Projects

Explore existing citizen science projects in this section or click the Citizen Science Projects button to see a larger directory including sharks and many other topics.

Shark Trust 🦈projects include: 

Oceana

New Zealand 

Educational Opportunities

Africa

South Africa

Organizations

International

The following buttons are to directories that may offer some overlapping organizations and projects.

Africa

South Africa