Facebook analytics chart of Shem Creek Fans


Please make a donation to support The Leukemia Cup Regatta on October 1-2, 2010. By doing so, you’ll be helping save lives. If you’re interested in learning more about The Leukemia Cup Regatta or participating in one of the many Leukemia Cup events throughout the country, please visit our 14th Annual Leukemia Cup Regatta fund-raising page!


July 22, 2010

Sharks, poised for extinction?

piles of shark fins
Workers in Hong Kong sort shark fins destined for dinner tables.
Credit: NYT

Sharks have been around for millions of years, but like all things at the top of the food chain that we consume, our insatiable appetites will get the best of us in the end if we don’t practice some good conservation techniques.

We already know from the WWF that bluefin tuna will be extinct by 2012. Now we have another big problem: sharks are being killed by the millions — 100 million a year according to the NYT!

Click on those piles of shark fins. Notice the guy in the back hiding his face? Yea, he knows scalping sharks just for their fins is wrong, but one way or another, the industry flourishes.

inside Singapore's Imperial Court Shark’s Fin Restaurant
Their specialty: Double Boiled Superior Shark’s Fin w/Seawhelk 响蜾炖鸡鲍翅

As a matter of fact, American owned Citibank has been using shark fins for marketing; their website is currently advertising a 15% discount at Singapore’s Imperial Court Shark’s Fin Restaurant.

Thanks to public awareness from conservationists though – most notably Hong Kong’s Shark Saver’s campaign – the word is finally getting out. Maybe now, sharks will be left alone and allowed to continue their important job as a top-level predator.

Here’s a short teaser of Shark Saver’s Hong Kong campaign highlighting several people taking a stand, vowing not to eat shark fin soup, and asking others to join in. It’s the first in a series of several films from their Hong Kong filming project launched in conjunction with the “Pledge Not to Eat Shark Fin Soup” campaign and Shark Savers Hong Kong. Take the pledge now!

  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Google Bookmarks
  • email
  • LinkedIn
  • Live
  • MySpace
  • Print
  • SphereIt
  • StumbleUpon
  • Technorati
  • FriendFeed
  • PDF
  • RSS
  • Reddit
  • Yahoo! Buzz
  • Twitter
  • Add to favorites
  • Suggest to Techmeme via Twitter
  • Tumblr
Related Post(s)
  1. 380lb. lemon shark sets new game fish record
  2. NOAA proposes measures to rebuild shark populations
  3. Coastal Conservation League celebrates 20 years
  4. NOAA declares four fish stocks fully rebuilt
  5. How well do you know the fish you just paid for?
  6. Female angler sets new state record for Atlantic Sharpnose Shark
  7. Who’s “gray water” is it anyway?
  8. URGENT: Watch for the state-endangered swallow-tailed kite
  9. Cousteau, Danson, Activists want offshore drilling ban
  10. Coastal Explorations Series Spring 2009



What do you think about that?






beaches boats Charleston area coast conservation crab dolphins education endangered fisheries Fishing-Shrimping fishing industry fish record golf kayaking Kiawah Island mercury Mt. Pleasant NOAA ocean acidification offshore drilling overfishing oysters pollution real estate resorts SCDNR sea level shark Shem Creek shoreline shrimp shrimping industry South Carolina sustainability tourism transportation travel tuna turtles urban growth water watershed wetlands wind

WP-Cumulus by Roy Tanck and Luke Morton requires Flash Player 9 or better.