More Sharks Endangered, Shark Fin Soup anyone?

 

The Hammer Head Shark, one of the coolest species in the ocean has been put on the Endagered Species list.

“… the hammerhead was among the most endangered species from shark finning because their meat had very low value but their fins were highly prized for the Asian delicacy shark-fin soup.”  says Sonja Fordham, Shark Alliance’s policy director.

The Asian fish market is frighteningly bad.  Especially the Japanese market.

Shark fin soup is also sited as aiding in the continuing destruction of the Galapagos.

 Despite bans on the trade in fins, conservationists believe that in the past five years, the fins of more than 1.7 million sharks have been exported from Ecuador – and the Galapagos region accounted for more than 80% of those.

 

And what’s worse:

“Shark fin soup is erroneously considered an aphrodisiac or regarded as beneficial to one’s health, although studies have shown no healthful benefits. Ironically, the methods used to prepare shark fin soup reduce the water content of the fin, which concentrates numerous chemical impurities. Shark fins studied at the University of Hong Kong contained 5.84 parts per million (ppm) of mercury, compared to a maximum permitted level of 0.5 ppm. The high presence of mercury was confirmed in independent tests conducted by two state-related labs in Thailand, and the findings are also reflected in US, Australian, and New Zealand governmental reports.

In plain English, this means that eating shark fins could render men sterile due to the high mercury content.”–Closertofree.org