Feliz Año Nuevo

Posted on January 7, 2010 by bansharkfinning

¡¡Hola Shark Savers!! Just wanted to wish you all a very happy new year and wish you all the best in whatever resolutions you may or may not have made. I have been in San Jose de los Cabos, México since the 30th and will be here until the 10th. It is an absolutely incredible experience!! The beauty and majesty of the whale migration off of the coast of Mexico is breathtaking. There are no words for such a lovely experience. I have had my picture taken with a wild donkey, been stabbed by sea urchins while snorkeling, seen several types of whales breach/play in the water (numerous Humpback Whales!!) and have heard that their songs can be heard excellently while snorkeling, I have also witnessed jumping rays (I assume they are Eagle Rays or Manta Rays, stingrays don’t jump)!! That alone is a sight worth taking in. It seems like everyone, man and beast, is enjoying the lazy island vibe that is so contagious you can’t help but catch it. I will post more about the whale migration, the jumping Rays, and, of course, SHARKS!!

Feliz año nuevo,

a girl with a dream

PS

Here’s an interesting bit of information of jumping Rays 

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New Measures Take Effect in January 2010

Posted on December 27, 2009 by bansharkfinning

Looks like the conservationists have been hard at work on the East Coast. Several new rules are going to take effect in mid-January that incorporate restrictions on fin harvesting (aka Finning) in the waters from Florida to Maine. Fourteen different kinds of sharks are now on the limited catch list. Some of the sharks that will now be protected from fin harvesting as a result of these new rules include the sandbar, silky and Caribbean sharpnose sharks from state waters.

What are some of the restrictions?

– One fish per person/two fish per vessel

-54-inch fork length minimum size limit for most sharks in Florida waters (except Atlantic sharpnose, blacknose, bonnethead, finetooth and blacktip sharks and smooth dogfish)

Silky Sharks are one of the types of sharks protected under the new measures due to overexploitation

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EU Ban on Fishing for Two Types of Endangered Sharks

Posted on December 26, 2009 by bansharkfinning

Another step in the right direction. Things are slowly getting better for sharks … Another two types of sharks will hopefully be able to be taken off of the endangered species list soon because of this move 😀

“EU ministers have agreed to a ban on catching porbeagle sharks and reduced the fishing quotas for spurdog sharks by 90 per cent.”

Enjoy 🙂

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Obama Gets B- from Humane Society

Posted on December 26, 2009 by bansharkfinning

The article says it all… Enjoy 🙂

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Conservationist Says Ban Finning in Fiji

Posted on December 26, 2009 by bansharkfinning

Outside of the clever alliteration it is incredibly encouraging to see someone such as Mike Newman calling on the region to ban shark finning, He says “these moves are necessary to protect sharks, an endangered species critical for the survival of coral reefs.” Palau has recently become a major hub for tuna ships to off load shark fins on their way to port. Sharks are the top predator in our oceans and have proven their dominance with minuscule changes through the millions of years of evolution around them.

Everyone is concerned with saving our environment, our Ozone Layer, our land and oceans … Saving sharks is a majorly important factor in “going green.” Our lives without sharks would be in danger. They help keep the intricate balance that we see in our world day to day. The world ecosystem relies on this incredibly advanced, majestic creatures.

Quick facts from the article;

* Of 307 shark species, 50 are listed as vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered
* Of 64 species of open ocean sharks and rays, 32 per cent are threatened with extinction, primarily due to over fishing
* Shark fishery is a relatively lucrative business
Developing countries share a trade worth an estimated USD$515 million
* Of this, USD$101.1 million came from shark fin exports
* These figures are largely unrepresented of much of the black market trade.

For more info, here’s the article. Enjoy 🙂

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.. thank you thank you thank you…

Posted on November 2, 2009 by bansharkfinning

Hey everyone – Thanks for all of your visits and comments on my blog =D I really do appreciate each and every one. It means so much that people would take time out of their busy lives to read up a bit on these beautiful creatures. Sorry that the posts haven’t been up to date recently, I have a lot on my plate at the moment. Here’s just a brief glimpse…

I have been working full time, going to school full time, studying for the LSAT, as well as starting and hopefully soon finishing my law school apps. That all on top of time with my family has been enough to take it out of me.

I appreciate your patience and want you all to know that educating people about sharks and finning will always been in my thoughts. I haven’t turned my back on this endeavor, nor will I ever, I have simply taken a brief  hiatus so that I can pursue avenues that will help me to more actively save our sharks. Thanks again for your support (the sharks can really use it!). I do hope you’ll follow me on twitter @banfinning =D

Love always,

a girl with a dream

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Ban On Shark Feeding

Posted on September 22, 2009 by bansharkfinning

This looks to be another great step .. Oahu is set to ban shark feeding in popular diving areas. While this is a set back to the diving industry this will be immensely helpful to the conservation of sharks. At least the diving industry can make up it’s losses, sharks however cannot. They have become increasingly subject to what humans do in their oceans and have no choice but to attempt to survive.

“(Shark feeding) raises public safety concerns for ocean users, is disrespectful of Hawaiian culture, alters the natural behavior and distribution of sharks, and may be disruptive of ocean ecology and the natural environment,” Councilman Charles Djou said.

Reasons why shark feeding is dangerous:

1. Poses a threat to sharks natural processes

2. Threat to the ocean ecosystems

3. Threat to swimmers/surfers nearby (sharks associate humans with food and become less wary of us)

4. Offensive to native Hawaiians who consider sharks sacred

Here’s a link to the article, it’s a must read!!

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Shark Attack Survivors Saving Sharks

Posted on July 16, 2009 by bansharkfinning
Mike Coots surfing after attack 12 years earlier, courtesy of Mike Coots

Mike Coots surfing after attack 12 years earlier, courtesy of Mike Coots

Now that title is something to behold is it not? Shark victims (not just one but quite a few) are standing up to save sharks in Washington D.C. The very people who have the right to fear the impeccable creatures that Discovery Channel portrays as being bloodthirsty eating machines. But in fact they are doing the opposite, they are trying to save the world’s top predator. They are helping Congress to realize that the sharks in our oceans don’t have a fighting chance unless we stand up for them.

One of the survivors: “It’s like a massacre,” Coots said by phone from his Washington, D.C., hotel room. “To kill off that many animals that quickly, it’s completely devastating to the ecosystem.”

Read more of what Mike Coots has to say here

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Sharks don’t get cancer? FAT CHANCE!!

Posted on July 8, 2009 by bansharkfinning
Shark Fin Cartilage Powder

Shark Fin Cartilage Powder

“… more than 40 tumors had been documented in sharks, skates and rays,” reported by researchers at George Washington University Medical Center in Washington D.C.

A study done by the George Washington Medical School found that shark fin does not in fact help keep  from getting cancer or other sicknesses. Shark fins have in fact been used for thousands of years in Africa and Asia. The shocker? The use of shark fin remedies has moved to the West with increasing popularity. Another shocker? “Clinical studies on cancer patients, including a 1998 study by the Independent Cancer Treatment Research Foundation in Illinois, haven’t shown cartilage powders to have any anti-cancer benefits.”

What else?” Cancer Research UK, an independent cancer-research organization, states “We don’t recommend alternative therapies such as shark cartilage, as there is no scientific or medical evidence to back up the claims made for these ‘treatments’.”

Moral of this story: Shark fins are tasteless and provide no medical benefit at all! They’re only beneficial when attached to the Sharks they come from.

Read this article: Understand how useless Shark Fin meds are here!

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.. Whale Sharks are all one big family ..

Posted on June 23, 2009 by bansharkfinning
Whale Shark

Whale Shark

For Whale Sharks (RhincodonTypus) it is all, very literally, in the family. The Whale Shark has been around since the Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods (that translates to be around 245-65 million years ago). Pretty impressive for a species that lives on incredibly small species as a main daily diet.

Looking to see a Whale Shark? Australia has the most recorded sightings and there is always India, the Maldives, South Africa, Belize, Mexico, the Galapagos Islands, Southeast Asia and Indonesia. As you can tell by these locations Whale Sharks prefer the warmer, more temperate waters.

As with any type of shark they are in major danger … one Whale Shark can sell for around $20,000 US due to the fact that it is considered a delicacy in China, Taiwan, Singapore, Korea and Japan. Hopefully their status on the endangered species list will overtake their status as a delicacy. If it doesn’t this majestic, peaceful creature will cease to be on any type of list.

Please help this creature by informing everyone you know of this issue and keep one of the oldest families around for as long as possible.

Here’s the article: It’s all in the family

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