Status of sharks in Sri Lankan fisheries

Sharks (superorder: Selachii) are incredibly diverse with many pelagic species having circumglobal distributions. While some targeted deep-sea shark fisheries exist at small scales in Sri Lanka, the majority of landings are from bycatch in tuna and billfish fisheries by single and multi-day vessels from coastal waters all the way into the high seas. These species are retained for their highly valued fins that are exported, and for domestic consumption of meat. In Sri Lanka, over 540 days of survey across 19 landing sites, a total of 214 blue sharks (Prionace glauca); 553 silky sharks (Carcharhinus falciformis); 40 shortfin mako sharks (Isurus oxyrinchus); 27 longfin mako sharks (Isurus paucus); 43 scalloped hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna lewini); 15 smooth hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna zygaena); and 5 oceanic white tip sharks (Carcharhinus longimanus) were recorded. Bias toward the proportion of juvenile and immature specimens are clearly observed in some species. This, together with new data available such as the IUCN Red List assessments, and the fact that multiple countries catch these species within the Indian Ocean, make them extremely poor candidates for commercial fisheries. Recommendations such as improved data collection, mitigation and interim non-retention measures, are strongly recommended to curb population decline and enable recovery.