Group: Ban all shark hunting to protect species
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah’s campaigners against the hunting and finning of sharks are growing frustrated with the slow pace in the implementation of various measures to save the sharks from disappearing from state waters.
Describing the move to ban the hunting of four sharks and two ray species as “too little, too late”, Sabah Shark Protection Association president Aderick Chong said that a total ban was necessary as it was near impossible to differentiate the species once they were in the market.
During last year’s Sabah Shark and Ray Forum, Chong said he brought along shark fins from various sources in the market and asked the experts if they could differentiate which species they were from.
“None could identify the species by looking at it,” he said, explaining that a total ban on shark hunting was crucial to protect Sabah’s fast diminishing shark population.
Chong, who has been spearheading the campaign with other NGOs for nearly eight years, said that many shark species were rarely seen nowadays in reefs around Sabah, which was a reflection of their diminishing numbers.
Studies by Universiti Malaysia Sabah also indicate that the number of sharks caught by fishermen was smaller, he said.
Chong said he started the Sharks Around Sabah Reefs project to determine the types of sharks and rays present in the state’s waters.
He said that he would be asking divers to post their sightings or non-sightings of sharks and rays online at https://www.inaturalist. org/ projects/ log- sharks- sightingsaround-sabah-s-reefs.
“We hope divers will keep posting. We will then know the true situation of our shark population,” he said.