The boom in human civilisation has decimated key predator populations on both land and sea. Gone are the days of plentiful lions, tigers, whales and sharks.
Over the last 50 years, shark populations have declined by more than 90 percent. More than 100 million sharks are killed each year.
Sharks are killed worldwide both accidentally and intentionally.
More than 50 million sharks are scooped up in fishing nets and trawlers because they follow around schools of fish, according to Sea Shepherd, a conservation society.
At the same time, millions of sharks are falling victim to the Shark Fin Soup trade. Sharks are caught, their fins are cut off, and then they are simply thrown back into the water. Without their fins, the sharks sink to the bottom of the sea and slowly die. Some die a prolonged death from starvation, while others suffocate, unable to keep water moving past their gills.
Like predators in any ecosystem, sharks are essential because they provide balance and control populations of other animals. About 32% of shark species are threatened, according to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
Experts say educating people about the origin and practices in shark finning could curb the number of shark killings a year, but until over-fishing is addressed, sharks will continue to die by the tens of millions.
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