|
Sharks have been capturing the imagination of people and folklore for countless generations. Even today sharks are revered. They sit at the top of the marine food chain and have done so for hundreds of millions of years, with little evolutionary changes. Unfortunately many sharks species around the world are threatened with extinction, endangered or fished to a point of full or over-exploitation, meaning that their status is precarious and their populations could plummet with any more pressure, either human or environmental. Respect for sharks is thankfully returning in some parts of the world and they have become an economic goldmine, both for their value as tourist attractions for the dive industry and unfortunately also for the value of their fins. Catching sharks for their fins (shark finning) is probably the single biggest threat to sharks, though their demise as bycatch in other fisheries as well as climate change and habitat destruction are also taking their toll. A staggering 100 million sharks get killed each year by the fishing industry.
|
Jillian Morris with a Hammerhead shark. Photo by: Duncan Brake
|
Hammerhead sharks by Lanny Kho
|
Grey Reef Shark by Lanny Kho
|
The Sawfish - The King of Fishes
Sawfish by Miguel Clavero
|
Did you know that there are well over 400 species of sharks? Also, did you know that sharks are in fact closely related to rays? Sharks and rays are both elasmobranch fishes. There is growing interest in studying sharks and rays and through the Women4Oceans map and database you can find out the type of work people do to study, document and protect sharks and rays.
One type of elasmobranch, the sawfish, is an often overlooked, less well-known cousin of the ray. This animal is found in tropical and subtropical coastal waters around the world. They live in a range of coastal habitats from mangroves to estuaries and can be found in fresh, brackish and salt/sea water. |
|
With coastal development quickly destroying their habitat only few places remain where the sawfish can thrive. Women4Oceans' Ruth Leeney is a world expert on sawfish and her mission is to study and protect these beautiful animals as well as their habitats. By protecting the sawfish and their home, Ruth’s work protects the ecosystem services these habitats provide to both people and planet, as well as the many other plants and animals that live in these areas. Click here to find out more about Ruth, her work with sawfish and how your support can help us to protect this incredible animal, its habitat and the communities that come into contact with this prehistoric fish. Women4Oceans supports Ruth’s work. We want to see Ruth continue and expand her work to other parts of the world. This is only made possible through your donations. If you want to support Women4Oceans and Ruth’s work to help protect the sawfish donate here. |
Ruth Leeney. Photo by Chris Scarffe
“It’s not just about sawfish – it’s about the mangroves and coasts where sawfish live; the sharks, rays and myriad other animals that use those habitats, and the people whose livelihoods are intertwined with those animals and ecosystems. If we protect sawfish populations in the right way, we also ensure that ecosystems remain healthy, which has benefits both for biodiversity and for communities.”
– Ruth Leeney Director, Protect Africa’s Sawfishes |
Ruth Leeney. Photo by Chris Scarffe
|
Photo Credit: David Morgan
|
Love the Ocean? Want healthy Oceans? Want gender equality so we can achieve healthy oceans faster? Support Women4Oceans!
