MORE OCEANIC SHARKS ADDED TO THE IUCN RED LIST
More oceanic or "pelagic" sharks are being added to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species based on the findings of an international expert workshop, convened by the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC), that examined the conservation status of these highly migratory sharks against Red List criteria. "The qualities of pelagic sharks - fast, powerful, wide ranging - too often lead to a misperception that they are resilient to fishing pressure," said Sarah Fowler, (Pew Fellow), Co-Chair of the IUCN SSC Shark Specialist Group (SSG) and Director of Coastal and Marine Ecology for Naturebureau International. "This week, leading shark scientists from around the world highlighted the vulnerability of these species to overfishing and concluded that several species are now threatened with extinction on a global scale."

All three species of thresher sharks, known for scythe-like tails that can be as long as their bodies - were listed as Vulnerable globally. The bigeye and pelagic thresher sharks were assessed for the first time, while the "common" thresher was uplisted from the Data Deficient classification made in 2001.

The global threat status was heightened for shortfin mako, a favorite shark among commercial and recreational fishermen, from Near Threatened in 2000 to Vulnerable today.

The status of scalloped hammerhead shark was heightened from Near Threatened to Endangered.

The pelagic stingray, now listed as Least Concerned, contained the workshop's only good news of apparently stable, if not increasing trends.

SOURCE: http://www.iucn.org/en/news/archive/2007/02/22_pr_sharks.htm