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Anti-shark finning group appalled by Waiheke find

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Anti-shark finning group appalled by Waiheke find

3News NZ

A dogfish shark (photo: dragoncillo on Flickr)

A dogfish shark (photo: dragoncillo on Flickr)

A shark lobby group says the sharks found without fins in the Hauraki Gulf would have experienced excruciating pain before they died.

Around 200 sharks were discovered mutilated on Waiheke Island, but the Ministry of Fisheries says the practice is not illegal and they won't be investigating.

The director of the Anti-Shark Finning Alliance, Mick Dowers, is appalled and says the people responsible for the killings are in it just for one thing:

"There's no animal welfare concerns that these people take on board," he says. "They simply see sharks as a meal ticket, as big money, and they'll do whatever they can to get the fins off the sharks and onto the market."

Mr Dowers says dried shark fin can be worth up to a $1000 a kilogram.

Greg Keys from the Ministry of Fisheries says there is nothing illegal about the situation.

“The shark was identified as the rig or what we commonly call the dog fish and this dog fish is a species under the quota management system. The fish is processed at sea, a process that is commonly called ‘trunking’.”   

Mr Keys says the dogfish are each about 30 centimetres long.

3 News / RadioLIVE

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Comments

7/09/2011 9:21:35 p.m.

Brian Thomas wrote:

It IS illegal to fin sharks in NZ if the sharks are still alive at the time. It is illegal under the Animal Welfare Act 1999 where fish are included. In NZ it's not illegal to catch and fin sharks after they are dead. But how do we know they were dead when finned? The fact that the bodies were discarded suggest that the fishermen only wanted the fins so they probably just cut those off quickly and discarded the shark, possibly still alive. Ministry of Fisheries in NZ just don't care a damn. The only way to police this is to either ban ALL shark fishing or require that the whole shark be brought ashore before finning as some countries require. The industry last week claimed they must fin the sharks quickly at sea as the fin releases a 'chemical' which ruins the meat as soon as the shark is dead. So that rules out bringing the whole dead animal ashore first. So the only option I think is to ban shark fishing outright. This makes better conservation sense as well as animal welfare sense. NZ needs to join the real world on this and not just the real 'good for business' world.

7/09/2011 6:09:15 a.m.

Diana Fortinberry wrote:

I just hope and pray humanity wakes up before it's too late; and gains understanding that all creatures are our brothers and sisters, as St. Francis taught. And when one of us is h urt, we all hurt. These practices must be stopped. Thank you for spreading the word regarding this horrific cruelty born of greed. Darkness cannot survive in bright light. And the light grows brighter as more people find courage to confront the horrors inflicted upon those who cannot defend themselves.

2/09/2011 11:39:00 a.m.

Robbie Lauren wrote:

infuriating!

2/09/2011 8:07:28 a.m.

Craig wrote:

What is not clear is the accuracy of the report. If these are finned carcases washed up then this is in deed a crime, and comparsion with the lamb shanks by Chris is spot on.

If it is trimmed dogfish, ie head and belly flap like Cyril suggests then he is right, dogfish fillets are highly sort after and I could not imagine a commercial fisherman discarding the trunks, the process of trimming as Cyril describes kills the fish instantly so no wellfare issue there.

Same old story we only get to read part of the picture, were they finned shark caracases or trimmed head and belly???

Makes all the difference

1/09/2011 9:46:40 p.m.

Paul, UK wrote:

What a wonderful world we live in, it makes me so proud to be part of this caring, sharing human race. Unfortunatley since these atroscities happen underwater and at sea no one seems to give a damn, out of site really is out of mind. Slicing off rhino horn become illegal many years ago and so should finning, these wonderful creature deserve respect and laws to protect them. Well done Mick Dowers keep up the good work and don't let the ignorant fisherman get to you, they really would fish 24hrs a day and take every last living thing from the sea if they could thinking only about today and to hell with tomorrow.

1/09/2011 7:39:07 p.m.

cyril wrote:

Mick Dowers is an idiot. Large rig fins are worth $11 kg small fins $5.50. The meat of rig is worth between $5 to $7 kg on a rig of this size the fins are probably worth a dollar and the meat ten. hes talking shit. When you trunk a rig your first cut is across the back of the neck severing the spinal cord killing it instantly. They are targeted for there meat but to make maximum use of the resourse the fins were taken as well. All that is biscarded is the head, belly flap and guts all the commercially usable bits are kept.

1/09/2011 4:28:46 p.m.

Michele wrote:

I agree with all comments above. Come on SPCA, time to take on MAF and get them to get real. I am SO ashamed of the human race when I read things like this.

1/09/2011 3:46:08 p.m.

Jan wrote:

Nats wont do a thing about it...like they show little of no respect for humanity or the country...Money is what they are after and don't care how they get it...What show has a dogfish got?

1/09/2011 3:13:58 p.m.

Paul Crooks wrote:

For public awareness, especially if you have children, Sharks are biologically known as Apex Consumers and play an extremely important role in maintaining the structure and function of the marine ecosystem. The loss of Sharks or even a reduction in numbers of Sharks can cause dramatic shifts in the marine environment & generate a myriad of indirect effects resulting from changes in the abundance of other organisms. Without Sharks to regulate the abundance of species below them, shifts in population sizes can cascade throughout the food chain & disrupt the balance of the ecosystem. When sharks are removed from the system, the larger fish, which feed on herbivorous fish, increase in abundance. Without the smaller fish to eat the algae, corals can no longer compete for space. As a result, the ecosystem quickly becomes an algae dominated system, lacking the diversity and abundance of species once found within these coral reef ecosystems. Following this, Ocean water becomes acidic where all life is no longer sustainable, origin to the collapse of fisheries and eco-tourism, and that's just the beginning. As the ocean dies off, oxygen cannot be produced, as the phytoplankton that gives us some 70% of oxygen, cannot exist in these hypoxic states. Currently, scientists of the World are alarmed at the increasing demise of sharks, especially due to finning. A number of fisheries have experienced enormous reductions in catch efforts, whilst some have collapsed altogether, affecting incomes and revenues as well as sustainability. This issue is becoming more widespread and can very easily spread through other industries and economies. You may not like sharks, therefore, remain ignorant to this demise, but, think about this very carefully; if you have children, how ignorant are you to their future. Do be sure to ask them how they feel about this.

1/09/2011 12:43:31 p.m.

Pat Dickens wrote:

If 200 sharks washed up, how many didn't? New Zealand should be ashamed. This barbarity puts the country in the same negative light as Japan with the dolphin slaughter in Taiji. The Japanese don't see anything illegal in hunting dolphins either.