Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, U.S.A.
Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden, Tai Po, Hong Kong.
Conserv Biol. 2018 Apr;32(2):376-389. doi: 10.1111/cobi.13043. Epub 2017 Dec 15.
The shark fin trade is a major driver of shark exploitation in fisheries all over the world, most of which are not managed on a species-specific basis. Species-specific trade information highlights taxa of particular concern and can be used to assess the efficacy of management measures and anticipate emerging threats. The species composition of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China, one of the world's largest fin trading hubs, was partially assessed in 1999-2001. We randomly selected and genetically identified fin trimmings (n = 4800), produced during fin processing, from the retail market of Hong Kong in 2014-2015 to assess contemporary species composition of the fin trade. We used nonparametric species estimators to determine that at least 76 species of sharks, batoids, and chimaeras supplied the fin trade and a Bayesian model to determine their relative proportion in the market. The diversity of traded species suggests species substitution could mask depletion of vulnerable species; one-third of identified species are threatened with extinction. The Bayesian model suggested that 8 species each comprised >1% of the fin trimmings (34.1-64.2% for blue [Prionace glauca], 0.2-1.2% for bull [Carcharhinus leucas] and shortfin mako [Isurus oxyrinchus]); thus, trade was skewed to a few globally distributed species. Several other coastal sharks, batoids, and chimaeras are in the trade but poorly managed. Fewer than 10 of the species we modeled have sustainably managed fisheries anywhere in their range, and the most common species in trade, the blue shark, was not among them. Our study and approach serve as a baseline to track changes in composition of species in the fin trade over time to better understand patterns of exploitation and assess the effects of emerging management actions for these animals.
鱼翅贸易是全球渔业中捕捞鲨鱼的主要驱动力，其中大部分渔业都没有针对特定物种进行管理。特定物种的贸易信息突出了特别关注的分类单元，并可用于评估管理措施的效果和预测新出现的威胁。中国香港特别行政区是世界上最大的鱼翅交易中心之一，其物种组成在 1999-2001 年部分进行了评估。我们于 2014-2015 年在香港零售市场随机抽取并通过基因鉴定了鱼翅加工过程中产生的鱼翅切边（n=4800），以评估当时鱼翅贸易的物种组成。我们使用非参数物种估计器来确定至少有 76 种鲨鱼、鳐鱼和锯鳐供应了鱼翅贸易，并用贝叶斯模型来确定它们在市场中的相对比例。交易物种的多样性表明，物种替代可能掩盖了脆弱物种的枯竭；三分之一的已识别物种面临灭绝威胁。贝叶斯模型表明，有 8 个物种各自占鱼翅切边的比例超过 1%（蓝鲨为 34.1-64.2%，牛鲨和短鳍灰鲭鲨为 0.2-1.2%）；因此，贸易偏向于少数分布广泛的物种。其他几种沿海鲨鱼、鳐鱼和锯鳐也在贸易中，但管理不善。我们建模的物种中，只有不到 10 种在其分布范围内的渔业有可持续管理，而贸易中最常见的物种蓝鲨并不在其中。我们的研究和方法为跟踪鱼翅贸易中物种组成随时间的变化提供了一个基线，以更好地了解捕捞模式，并评估这些动物新出现的管理措施的效果。
