Basking Shark Threats and Conservation
Today Basking Sharks are one of the most heavily protected sharks in UK and EU waters, but this wasn't always the case.
Basking Sharks are listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Monitoring, management and further research is vital to ensure their survival.
Basking Shark Threats
There are no longer any target fisheries for Basking Sharks, and they are now one of the most heavily protected sharks in UK and EU waters. However, human impacts disproportionately affect Basking Sharks, due to them being long lived, slow growing, having long gestation periods and producing few young. Threats from human activities include:
Entanglement - Basking Sharks can easily become entangled in fishing nets and ropes. You can sometimes see scarring and abrasions caused by nets on their dorsal fin. If you do see an entangled Basking Shark, please report details to the Shark and Ray Entanglement Network (ShaREN) and if it has stranded, report it to British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) (if alive) or the Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme (CSIP).
Boat strikes - Propeller and boat strikes remain a danger for Basking Sharks. Particularly in summer months when they're feeding at the surface as they will rarely alter their course to evade approaching boats. Some sharks might have scarring and even injuries from collisions.
Harassment - Basking Sharks are very sensitive to disturbance and harassment by people. In all the excitement of seeing Basking Sharks, boats and other water users may end up getting too close to the shark, sometimes coming into direct contact. As well as causing physical harm, water-users can also disrupt their natural behaviour, such as feeding, courting and mating. You can help by following the Code of Conduct.
Fisheries – Although Basking Sharks are widely protected, this doesn’t prevent them being caught as bycatch.
Basking Shark Conservation
Today Basking Sharks are one of the most heavily protected sharks in UK and EU waters, but this wasn't always the case.
From 1946-1995 Basking Sharks were heavily fished in the Northeast Atlantic. They were targeted for their liver oil and meat and then for their large fins, which are prized in the shark fin trade.
Basking Shark fisheries displayed a typical ‘boom and bust’ pattern. Large volumes of mature Basking Sharks were initially caught. Followed by a rapid decline of landings, until fisheries were no longer financially viable and collapsed. The last Basking Shark fishery in British waters closed in 1995, leaving Basking Shark populations on the brink.
Basking Sharks are listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. They face a high risk of extinction in the wild, meaning immediate monitoring, management and further research is needed to learn more about these iconic species and to ensure their survival.
UK and EU Protection
IIn the UK and Ireland Basking Sharks are protected under:
· Schedule 5 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981
· Countryside Rights of Way Act 2000
· Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985
· Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004
· Wildlife Act 1976 (Republic of Ireland) (Basking Sharks added in 2022 – S.I. No. 485/2022)
These Acts make it illegal to intentionally kill, injure or harass Basking Sharks in British waters. Any person committing such an offence could face up to 6 months in prison and a large fine.
They’re also protected under other fisheries management measures such as:
· Tech Con – Retained EU Legislation Tech Con Regulation 2019/1241. EU commercial fishing vessels are prohibited from targeting, retaining, trans-shipping or landing Basking Sharks. And this also applies to third country vessels in EU waters.
· Shark Finning Regulations - Regulation (EU) No 605/2013, (UK) Shark Fins Act 2023.
Global Protection
Measures beyond the UK and Ireland include:
· Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) - Basking Sharks are listed under Appendix II of the CITES, meaning that international trade is regulated to ensure it doesn't threaten the survival of the species.
· Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) - Basking Sharks are listed in Appendices I and II of the CMS and Annex I of the CMS Sharks MoU. As a highly migratory species, Basking Shark Range State Cooperation is required.
· United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) - Basking Sharks are listed under Annex I – Highly Migratory Species – of the UNCLOS. Article 64 of UNCLOS directs signatory States to cooperate to ensure the conservation of this species. As well as encouraging optimal utilisation if they're caught.
