The Chilean National Congress unanimously passed a nationwide ban on shark finning. Oceana drafted the bill and campaigned for its passage. This groundbreaking decision came on the heels of a very similar ban passed by the United States Congress in December 2010, and puts both countries at the forefront of shark conservation. Read Press Release
Last week’s meeting of the Barcelona Convention concluded with no decision – only a delay – on the potential protection of ten species of threatened and endangered sharks and rays in the Mediterranean Sea. Oceana is extremely disappointed by this outcome, given the threatened status of these species in the Mediterranean, and the fact that … Read more
With 41% of the sharks and rays threatened, the Mediterranean is the most dangerous sea for these species Oceana, the international marine conservation organisation, urges Mediterranean nations to strengthen protection for threatened and endangered sharks and rays at the meeting of the Barcelona Convention which begins today in Marseille. This week’s meeting is critical for … Read more
Oceana, the international marine conservation organisation, strongly urges the European Commission to move forwards on amending the EU shark finning ban, following a public consultation which closes today, by developing a strong proposal requiring all sharks to be landed with their fins still attached. The existing regulation on finning was intended to stop this wasteful … Read more
Today millions of people around the world are celebrating the Chinese New Year and ushering in the Year of the Rabbit with family, friends, food and conversation. Unfortunately, shark fin soup is a featured dish at many of these meals – a traditional dish that has had a devastating effect on shark populations worldwide that … Read more
In 2006, 2007 and 2008, Oceana employed an ROV to complete bionomic seabed surveys in the Mediterranean Sea and Bay of Biscay, between 50 and 350 meters depth. Information on positions, depths and times of observations was recorded, providing new data on the geographic distribution and bathymetric range of chondrichthyans. Fourteen species were found: five … Read more
The circalittoral seabeds of the Cabrera Archipelago National Park (Spain) and the surrounding areas are characterized by a combination of soft detritic bottoms scattered with coral or rock, which harbor a wide variety of Mediterranean flora and fauna, including several species of elasmobranchs. In 2007, Oceana carried out bionomic investigations to survey the seabeds in … Read more
As the 17th Special Meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) closed today in Paris, France, Oceana, the world’s largest international ocean conservation organization called it a “massive failure for bluefin tuna and swordfish, with only modest progress for sharks and sea turtles.” “Despite the flowery rhetoric, it was ‘business … Read more
We are fast nearing the end of the 2010 ICCAT meeting in Paris. As some of you know, the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) is an international body responsible for the conservation and management of tuna and related species, as well as species caught incidentally as bycatch in these fisheries, including … Read more
Oceana, the world’s largest international ocean conservation organization, released a new report today (EN, FR) that estimates that more than 1.3 million highly migratory sharks were caught in the Atlantic Ocean during 2008, without international fisheries management. This estimate demonstrates the need for protections of highly migratory sharks at the 17th Special Meeting of the … Read more
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We have already protected nearly 4 million square miles of ocean and innumerable sea life - but there is still more to be done.
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