Shark News | Issue 03 | October 2021

We want to invite you to discover the third issue of Shark News – the official IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC) Shark Specialist Group (SSG) magazine.

Shark News provides a forum for the exchange of information on all aspects of shark, ray, and chimaera conservation matters for SSG members and the general interested audience.

« … even though threats to sharks, rays, and chimaeras continue unabated, in this third issue of Shark News, we wanted to share some good news stories from around the world. You can read about how scientists and government entities in Indonesia have mobilized very quickly to understand and improve the status of rhino rays (sawfishes, wedgefishes, giant guitarfishes, and guitarfishes); how in Brazil, what started as a small project is making waves with coastal fishing communities who are now voluntarily releasing a Critically Endangered species of guitarfish; and how in Belize, fishers are currently working with scientists to provide information on their catches and inform policy. With this, we delve into IUCN’s ‘Green Status of Species’, a new global standard to measure how close a species is to be fully ecologically functional across its range and how much it has recovered due to conservation action. We have examples from three species of sharks. Once this tool is integrated as a complement to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, we will have a fuller picture of species’ conservation status in terms of their extinction risk and progress towards their recovery. Along with other stories from fieldwork in Ghana, Greece, and Malaysia, we have more good news from Australia, where only 12% of species are considered threatened, showcasing how fisheries management can work. »

Dr Rima W. Jabado | IUCN SSC Shark Specialist Group (SSG) Chair

We also thank the many contributors who have helped to shape the content of this third issue: Rima Jabado, Chelsea Stein, Michelle Scott, Marc Dando, Kelvin Aitken, Guy Stevens, Sirachai Arunrugstichai (Shin), Sarah Fowler, Jennifer Pytka, Andrea Pauly, Sophie Le Clue, Stan Shea, Benaya Simeon, Een Irawan Putra, Khairul Abdi, Yudi Herdiana, Simon Lorenz, Dr. Simon J Pierce, Gonzalo Araujo, Brit Finucci, Charlie Huveneers, Molly Grace, Peter Kyne, Ian Shaw, Kar-Hoe Loh, Amy Y.H. Then, serena adam, Amanda Leung, Bernard Seret, Alexei Orlov, Issah Seidu, Moro Seidu, Ioannis Giovos, Massimiliano Bottaro, Demian Chapman, Beverly Wade, Jessica Quinlan, Natascha Wosnick, Renata Daldin Leite, Eloísa Pinheiro Giareta, Max Janse, Núria Baylina, Hollie Booth, Divya Karnad, Cassandra Rigby, Simone Caprodossi, Alistair Dove, Michael Scholl, Peter Scholl and all the IUCN SSC Shark Specialist Group (SSG) members

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