Shark farming

[InTheDrink]

On a recent trip to Cocos we had endless evening debates on what can or cannot be done to save shark populations from further decimation.

My take was that a pre-emptive nuclear strike on the Chinese would be most effective. Sadly my companions favoured less confrontational approaches. I think they were worried about where they'd buy their TVs and iPods from.

My buddy wondered whether commercial shark farming might be viable, in the same way that salmon are farmed. He's quite a serious person, with some means also, so he was genuinely looking to find out whether this could be a viable commercial enterprise or not. Sure, it wouldn't be pretty - shark finning never could be - but if it could help preserve wild shark then it could have some significant merit.

Anyone any thoughts on what the major considerations would be for such an endeavour or any thoughts on whether this kind of endeavour is even vaguely feasible? e.g. reproductive cycles don't appear to work in favour of farming shark. What are the other variables that would need to be taken into consideration and has anyone ever tried commercial shark farming before?

I know that education would be the preferred mechanism to eradicate the appetite for shark fin soup, essentially to kill the demand side rather than looking to control the supply side, however even assuming an education program could be successful, it would take too long to take effect.

TIA,
J

[smellzlikefish]

BTW-I would be more wary of comments against certain ethnicities as you may offend people here who might otherwise be on your side.

I think the slow reproductive cycle, few offspring, and slow growth rates would kill the project right out. After that you'd have to find an economical food source. Fish meal comes from somewhere, meaning you would save a minimal number of sharks at the cost of other valuable species. Further issues are the usual space/waste disposal limitations. I know of at least one tuna farming (not ranching) operation that could never get off the ground due to permitting issues. The PI gave up after resubmitting multiple copies of his two-inch-thick environmental impact study and he got shut down every time. While seemingly sensible at first, your project would be buried before it even got off the ground.

[InTheDrink]

BTW-I would be more wary of comments against certain ethnicities as you may offend people here who might otherwise be on your side.

I think the slow reproductive cycle, few offspring, and slow growth rates would kill the project right out. After that you'd have to find an economical food source. Fish meal comes from somewhere, meaning you would save a minimal number of sharks at the cost of other valuable species. Further issues are the usual space/waste disposal limitations. I know of at least one tuna farming (not ranching) operation that could never get off the ground due to permitting issues. The PI gave up after resubmitting multiple copies of his two-inch-thick environmental impact study and he got shut down every time. While seemingly sensible at first, your project would be buried before it even got off the ground.

Thanks for your response and apologies if my initial post caricatured the Chinese - it was intended in a light hearted manner although the point remains salient, the appetite for shark fin soup, which I don't think anyone denies is driving depletion of stocks, is the preserve in the main of the Chinese or derived markets. If this is wrong I am happy to be corrected.

In terms of the actual project - thanks for the input. It certainly isn't my project and my friend will most likely employ the services of a good marine biologist with expertise in the field, no doubt only to find discover the same answers/problems that you have put forward. It is hard to see (even as someone with no real understanding of the subject) how these main obstacles could be overcome, at least not at the moment. At some point, like everything else, the market could become viable if wild stocks become so depleted as to make the only alternative farmed stocks, but of course the object would be preventing this eventuality to come to pass in the first place.

If anything comes of this project, even if it is a flat 'yeah, it died a death at the first hurdle' I'll post back to this thread. In the meantime, if anyone can think of ways that the hurdles that smellzlikefish mentioned could be overcome then your input would be appreciated.

Apologies again for any juvenile comments in my original post.

J

[InTheDrink]

Oh one other thing - I am not singling out the Chinese for being unique offenders. I lay the blame squarely on the whole of the homo sapien species. We appear incapable of anything but gorging ourselves on the planet, far beyond what we actually need, and when there's nothing left at least we'll only have ourselves to blame.

Maybe we should drop the whole 'sapien' business and replace with 'inasnum'. Certainly 'wise' is not a word that resonates particularly strongly these days when thinking about humans.

[Ross1]

I wish there was a way they could be farmed. But as has been said it's not going to happen, many species need so much space as well.

I think slowing and stopping the consumption of shark products especially shark fin soup has to be our best way of trying to save these stunning beasts.

[Toddms]

shark farming is not practical because they are long-lived and have low reproductive out put. In comparison, salmon reach sexual maturity in 3-5 yrs and produce 1000s of eggs, and sharks can take a decade or more and ten produce a few pups.

[pinko]

Look at my thread "shark finning" it has some good links on it. Also tell people about shark fin soup and shark finning. The less people buying = the less sharks needed to be killed.

[InTheDrink]

Thanks, will check out your post.

And whilst I agree that education and reducing the amount of people that eat shark fin soup is definitely an important strand to reducing demand, at present the demand exists and isn't likely to reduce in any meaningful way any time soon. Therefore looking at how to manage the supply side isn't completely ridiculous. I appreciate the length of time sharks require to reach sexual maturity and reproduce but I believe some species are a little quicker than others. Off the cuff, although it takes 8 or 9years to hit sexual maturity, Whitetips give birth to between 1 and 6 pups every other year (gestation period of around a year). They also don't travel very far so the space requirement could be manageable.

In any event, I'm not saying it's a viable endeavour, not at all, just looking for input, thoughts and comments.

Thanks and here's hoping that the ongoing decimation of sharks can be halted, somehow.

J

[InTheDrink]

The other thing of course is that eventually shark farming will become viable (assuming current rate of shark finning and chinese middle class growt). There will be a tipping point where it becomes economically more attractive to buy sharks from a farm than trying to find the last remaining sharks in the ocean to fin. In much the same way that hitherto or currently uneconomical energy sources (oil sands, wind, etc.) are/will become viable as fossil fuels become more scarce.

In both cases we might be waiting for a while of course. But at current rate of consumption, population growth and global increase in middle classes many things that are abundant and cheap now from mother earth will not be in the decades and centuries to come.

J

[LRobbins]

Interesting idea, I have never thought of shark farming, but personally am against it. Shark finning, regardless of where it happens is cruel, wasteful and pointless. I dived with some divers from Hong Kong and they said the younger generation is starting to "get it". Hopefully people get it in time before the sharks are all gone.