Life in the Slow Lane: Ecology and Conservation of Long-Lived Marine Animals

Variable Resilience to Fishing Pressure in Two Sharks: The Significance of Different Ecological and Life History Parameters

John D. Stevens

doi: https://doi.org/10.47886/9781888569155.ch2

Abstract.—Sharks have the reputation of being particularly vulnerable to fishing pressure, a fact attributed to their generally ‘ K-selected’ life history strategies. The history of shark fisheries is not encouraging, and their poor record of sustainability is compounded by the fact that few countries have any form of management for these resources. The Australian Southern Shark Fishery provides an example of a well-studied shark fishery with a long history of exploitation that has been under a management plan for some ten years. This fishery is unique in that it exploits, under a similar fishing regime, two similar target shark species that show very different responses to fishing pressure. Stock assessments suggest that under current fishing effort the catch of one species is sustainable while the other species is overexploited. The vulnerability of the two species to the fishing gear is similar but their biological productivity is very different. The selective pressures that may have given rise to these different life history strategies are discussed.