Climate change: Two-thirds of reef sharks and rays at risk of extinction
Updated On Jan 18, 2023 05:38 PM IST
Nearly two-thirds of the sharks and rays that live among the world's corals are threatened with extinction, according to new research published by the Simon Fraser University and James Cook University, which warns that this could further imperil precious reefs. Coral reefs, which harbour at least a quarter of all marine animals and plants, are gravely menaced by an array of human threats, including overfishing, pollution, and climate change. The authors found 59 percent of coral reef shark and ray species are threatened with extinction.
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Updated on Jan 18, 2023 05:38 PM IST
Bull sharks are seen swimming in the waters off Fiji in this handout photo released on January 16. Nearly two-thirds of the sharks and rays that live among the world's corals are threatened with extinction, says new research published in the journal Nature Communications. (Colin Simpendorfer / Simon Fraser University & James Cook University / AFP)
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This handout image shows a Bluespotted lagoon ray. Coral reefs, which harbor at least a quarter of all marine animals and plants, are gravely menaced by an array of human threats. Shark and ray species -- from apex predators to filter feeders -- play an important role in these delicate ecosystems that "cannot be filled by other species", said Samantha Sherman, of Simon Fraser University.(Colin Simpendorfer / Simon Fraser University & James Cook University / AFP)
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A porcupine stingray is seen near a jetty in this photo released on January 16. Of the 134 species of sharks and rays linked to reefs studied by the universities, 59 were found to be threatened with extinction, AFP reported. Among these, five shark species are listed as critically endangered, as well as nine ray species - all so-called "rhino rays" that look more like sharks than stingrays. (Colin Simpendorfer / Simon Fraser University & James Cook University / AFP)
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This photo, released on January 16, by Simon Fraser University and James Cook University in Canada and Australia respectively, shows a cowtail ray in the sand, “It was a bit surprising just how high the threat level is for these species. Many species that we thought of as common are declining at alarming rates and becoming more difficult to find in some places,” Sherman told AFP. (Colin Simpendorfer / Simon Fraser University & James Cook University / AFP)
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A cowtail ray is seen swimming above some branching coral. Coral reef fisheries directly support the livelihoods and food security of over half a billion people, but this crucial ecosystem is facing an existential threat by overexploitation and global heating, AFP reported. (Handout / Simon Fraser University & James Cook University / AFP)
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Sandbar sharks are seen swimming next to a snorkeler in the Mediterranean Sea, off the coast of Hadera, Israel, on December 30, 2022. Authors of the study found that coral linked species of sharks and rays face an extinction risk almost double that of sharks and rays in general. (Ariel Schalit / AP)
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Fishermen release a huge whale-shark that got entangled in their fishing nets into the sea, at Puthiyathura coast, Thiruvananthapuram, on December 15, 2022. Sharks are under most threat in the Western Atlantic and parts of the Indian Ocean, whereas the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia are the highest risks for rays, the joint report said. (PTI)
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