Researchers have created a new tool provides a new way to assess the health of the oceans and marine ecosystems.
Scientists from the AZTI Technology Centre, in collaboration with the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation and Simon Fraser University, created the indicator tool to highlight the state of marine biodiversity and any changes in extinction risk.
When developing the tool, the Spain-based AZTI Technology Centre looked at seven decades of dates about major oceanic predatory fish, including 18 different species of tuna, billfish and sharks. The study authors are confident that the great success achieved with tuna and billfish management and conservation over the last few decades can be replicated with sharks going forward.
According to Simon Fraser University Professor Nick Dulvy:
“It’s encouraging to see we’ve been able to halt declines of tunas and billfishes but the decline of sharks continues…If we don’t do anything to mitigate overfishing and lack of effective management, the loss of these species threatens the balance of ecosystems and risk of food security and jobs in both developed and developing countries.”
You can find the original study here.
