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Shark Conservation and Ecology Research
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The GHRI and its collaborators are conducting an extensive, worldwide research
program aimed at providing the scientific information urgently needed for conservation and management of sharks and
their relatives (the rays). This multidisciplinary research program encompasses field and laboratory studies on the
migration, reproduction, habitat requirements, genetics, and biodiversity of sharks and rays.
In addition to their ecological importance as as apex predators in our oceans, GHRI is also studying sharks because they
are being subjected to intense fishing pressure worldwide as a result of the high demand for shark fins and cartilage. Since
many sharks travel long distances, crossing oceans and national boundaries, they are susceptible to the unregulated
fishing efforts of multiple nations. Consequently, shark populations have plummeted worldwide to less than 30 percent of
their numbers two decades ago. This decline, coupled with the slow reproductive rate of most sharks has prompted great
concern about the health of shark populations and an urgent need for effective conservation and management.
Photo credits: Shark market: © Shelley Clarke
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