I hope that everyone had a great holiday and enjoyed some shark-fin-soup free meals with their families!
I just wanted to tell some extremely interesting news that could teach us a lot about sharks in the near future. As some of you know, lots of sharks, like Great Whites, are known to feed on the rotting carcasses of whales. Whales are covered with layers of thick blubber and fat that fills up sharks and allows them to not need another meal for days, even weeks! The video link below (which you may have seen during SharkWeek) shows Great Whites devouring a floating whale carcass up close!
Last week, a massive 67-foot Fin Whale was unfortunately hit by ship, killing it. The sonar used by military ships and submarines is thought to interfere with the ecolocation of whales, causing them to swim in areas that they do not normal wade through. The carcass washed up in San Diego, California on the shore of Point Loma. After it was towed for six hours to near-by Fiesta Island where all of the nosey San Diegans’ said good-bye, it is being sunk to the depths of the sea.
Not interested yet? They are sending cameras down to the deep with it to try and capture some images and information about what goes on down there! Specialist Eddie Kisfaludy operations manager for Virgin Oceanic in San Diego excitedly said,
“The most ecologically responsible thing we want to do is put the whale back in the ocean… We’ll tie onto it, drag it off La Jolla — about five miles offshore — and add about four tons of steel to it that will hopefully sink it in 2,500 feet of water.”
As it sits at the bottom, scientists plan to take full advantage of this opportunity to research the species that will flock to the carcass for food, shelter, or possible for reasons currently unknown to us. I’m personally hoping that some sharks will swim by to nibble and possible give a little insight to what sharks do at such depths, and maybe even give some hints as to where Great Whites give birth! The possibilities are endless at this point! (Also meaning that nothing new could be discovered.) No matter what, it will be very interesting to see some footage of sea life at this depth. Kisfaludy comments saying,
“All of those things are very interesting to science because we know very little about the deep sea… Taking advantage of an opportunistic situation is what we are doing.”
Let’s all hope that in a few weeks I can post a new update on all of the incredible things discovered from the tragic death of the Fin Whale!
Have a Great Thanksgiving weekend and Just Keep Swimming!
“A man is called selfish not for pursuing his own good, but for neglecting his neighbor’s.” – Richard Whately
“A selfish man is a thief. ” – Jose Marti
I’m not introducing this week’s post with the word “selfish” to be punny. (Although, the fact that it is sel-fish does seem to fit in well the rest of the ridiculous words I like to create and hyphenate for the sake of being witty) Rather, the word “selfish” is the only word that I can find for humans today that seems to classify the majority of them at once. Humans care more about making themselves happy and comfortable than about most other things. Their indifference is frustrating and their gluttony shames the human race time and time again. So why am I ranting on about how selfish humans can be? Because it is their destructively selfish ways that are quickly killing off sharks. Each time a person decides to benefit themselves instead of another creature, for example, ordering a bowl of shark-fin-soup, they increase the suffering of another.
Every order of shark-fin-soup leads to the malicious murder of hundreds of sharks. (And who is doing this killing? Surprisingly enough, HUMANS! ) And as these sharks are being massacred, nearly 100 of the 400 species of sharks have become endangered. According to Shark Foundation, a well-known site among us shark fiends that allows the reader to search all endangered shark species, the severity of their endangerment, and the region or reason responsible for their rapid decrease,
“The “International Action Plan for Sharks” initiated by CITES and the FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization) have established that:
more than 100 out of 400 shark species are being commercially exploited
many of these shark species are so overexploited that even their long-term survival can no longer be guaranteed
a serious monitoring and control program is lacking for international shark trade.”
I’m sure a lot of readers did not even know that there were 400 shark species, nonetheless that 100 different kinds of sharks were being killed everyday for the production a brothey soup. As they are hunted and killed, it is near impossible for these sharks to give birth to enough offspring to maintain a great enough number to regenerate the species because most do not live long enough to mate and give birth. Yes, that does mean that fisherman are not waiting until the sharks are fully grown to barbarically butcher them (which would be the most logical way to obtain the greatest amount of fin). Rather, humans are being their normal, selfish selves and demanding shark-fin-soup at such a consistent rate that young, and even baby sharks, are carved to bits.
Now I understand that there are a lot of people in this world who are thinking, “Why would I ever care about sharks? They can go extinct for all I care!” WRONG! I cannot put enough emphasis on this as I say it: IF PEOPLE CONTINUE TO MURDER SHARKS, THEY WILL GO EXTINCT AND SO WILL HUMANS!
I’m not saying that the last shark dies and immediately all humans keel over. But let’s consider what would happen if we really did cause the extinction of all sharks, or at least the major players in the ocean like the Great White shark.
1. Great Whites go extinct.
2. All of the Great Whites food (fish, seals, ect) are not being killed.
3. Fish populations rise.
4. The amount of smaller feeder fish decreases drastically.
5. The fish that eat plants slowly devour the entire ocean floor.
6. The earth’s massive source of oxygen is depleted, killing all living creatures in the ocean and all air breathing creatures like ourselves.
7. All species are extinct, including humans.
I realize that this would take hundreds of years to happen and seems a little drastic. But I failed to mention the immense amount of suffering that would occur all over the world as food resources decrease and the ocean’s entire ecosystem collapses. SharkFriends.com gives a quick and effective summary of shark finning in relevance to the survival of humans,
“Mankind cannot continue to abuse nature or nature will strike back… and with brutal fury! …mankind will become extinct next if sharks disappear. Without sharks the oceans will team with fish and other ocean animals that live off the plant life in the sea. When this plant matter disappears so will the vital oxygen that the ocean produces…then what happens? Think about it.”
Humans need to think about the consequences of their actions. The amount that the ocean is used for recreation greatly effects the number of shark attacks as I have talked about in previous posts because the more people in the ocean increases the likely hood of an attack. However, with no sharks in the water, the ocean would ironically lose its appeal – trillions of fish, few plants and beautiful reefs and patties to explore, less attraction for scuba diving and other water activities.
Moral of my (very preachy) story, if you kill sharks you will die, and until then, you will have no fun! There, obviously, is a reason that states and countries all over the world are fighting for my fishy friends by attempting (some successfully) to ban shark finning and the sale of shark-fin-soup. Consider this the only post I will ever publish as a direct plea to all of my readers. If I have not scared you into following my example through my declaration of certain death, I hope that knowing that amazingly beautiful species all over the world are dying for no justifiable reason will sway your decision to help. Great White sharks are on the red list of endangered species with less than 3,500 left in the ocean today. I am asking you from the depths of heart to help fight for those in the depths of the ocean. It is the least that you could do for your fintastic, favorite blogger 😉
I know that every week I preach to all of my trusty readers about how terrible the shark massacres across the world have proven to be. I talk about how it needs to stop, about shark finning, and about how disturbing the deaths, or should I say MURDERERS, of these sharks are. But I have left many questions, basic and complex, unanswered up until this point and I would now like to answer these questions.
So what is shark finning? Let me preface this questions by telling you that in order for sharks to breathe and survive, they must continue swimming in order to have water constantly flowing through their gills. Now that I have explained the absolute basics, let me begin to answer your questions. Shark finning, as defined by stopsharkfinnning.net is:
“…the practice of slicing off the shark’s fins while the shark is still alive and throwing the rest of its body back into the ocean where it can take days to die what must be an agonizing death”
“to cut off the fins from (a fish); carve or cut up, as a chub.”
Although one definition is obviously more compassionate towards the suffering of sharks, both say the same thing – finning is the act of cutting body parts off a shark or fish. Webster’s conveniently forgets to include “while it is still alive and then either discarding the body as waste, or what is more commonly practiced, throwing it back into the water.” As I already said, a shark cannot breathe if it is not moving because it needs water circulating through its gills. With no fins to propel the shark’s body through the water, the shark is unable to breathe and drowns in the only place that it has ever felt safe and called home.
I advise you to watch the short film that I have posted below. However, I would like to forewarn you that there is footage of finning in the video that those who do not have strong stomachs may not want to watch. I honestly advise all to watch anyway it because I think it makes shark finning, and the gruesome murder that it is, extremely real…
With the question of “What is Shark finning?” now answered, more questions arise. One of the most trifling being “What use of the fins could be so important that people find the need to kill hundreds of millions of sharks a year?” I wish that I could say the fins were used for medical research, for some kind of cure for cancer, or even for a necessary source of food. However, the frightening truth is that a selfish species of animals called humans use these fins for soup. That’s right, SOUP. Shark-fin-soup. What does shark fin taste like that could be in such a high demand? Nothing. The fins are not used for taste, but rather for their texture. Stopsharkfinning.net states,
“Shark fin itself is tasteless, it just provides a gelatinous bulk for the soup which is flavoured with chicken or other stock.”
This Asian delicacy kills 100 to 200 million sharks a year just to add a certain consistency to a soup. Seems a little absurd if you ask me. If puppy paw pies were an ancient Mexican specialty, I do not think that the citizens of the United States would allow over 100 millions puppies to die terrible, disturbing deaths each year just to make some pies. However, when it comes to shark fin soup, people shield their eyes from the truth and will sometimes pay as much as $350 for one bowl! I know that personally do not have hundreds spilling out of my pockets – being a working college student. But if I did, I would never pay $350 for one course of my meal. Apparently others treasure the soup enough to pay that outrageous sum. But these ARE the same people who fund the massacres of millions of sharks so it is not too surprising that we don’t agree on some of the same things.
So what do we do? What have I been telling you every week to do? FIGHT BACK! We need to put a stop to these murders and get shark-fin-soup banned from all restaurants all over the world. We need to teach people the consequences of their actions before it is too late! We need to save the sharks!
1. I realize that stopping the sale of shark fins all over the world isn’t exactly an easy task, especially in places that consider it a traditional meal like China and Japan. However, the best place for each person to start is in their own neighborhood, city, and state. The Animal Welfare Institution has made this step as easy as possible for you. They have composed a list of all of the restaurants that sell shark -fin-soup in every state across the U.S. Just click on your state, find the restaurants and make a call. If enough people call and say that they will no longer eat there unless they rid their menus of murder, a change will happen!
2. Move on to the state next to yours, and then the three near that one, and then the ones all the way across the country. Some states have already passed bans, like Hawaii and Oregon. Do your part to help other states ban the fins and eventually these magnificent creatures can live and thrive in their natural habitat free of fear.
3. Sign petitions. There are hundreds of petitions all around the world to stop this barbaric butchering. Sign your name to them! With enough signatures, bans can actually become an option.
4. DO NOT EVER EAT SHARK-FIN-SOUP!!!!!!! (I hope this one was a given, but I thought I should mention it just to be safe) One bowl tells restaurants that people want the soup. One restaurant tells one supplier that a demand for the soup still exists. One supplier goes to the dock and purchases fins from a fisherman who kills millions of sharks a year. Stay away from the soup. If everyone were to do it, there would be no demand for their fins and no more need to kill my fintastic friends.
I hope that after reading this you are informed enough to make the decision NOT to support the shark fin market and you use your voice to speak for the sharks who cannot speak for themselves. The biggest problem is that most people do not fully understand the implications and negative complications that follow shark finning. Keep reading my posts to learn more about bans that have occurred, bans that have yet to pass, the true side effects of shark fin soup, and (of course) what you can do to help sharks become friends and not food.
greatwhiteteenager 