On December 10th, 2019, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) released updated status reports for 29 species of sharks, rays and skates including for great and scalloped hammerheads and oceanic white tip sharks. These three species were newly classified as “critically endangered.” Overfishing, estimated to kill 70 million to 100 million sharks per year, is decimating shark populations around the world. Hammerhead populations have reportedly been reduced by 80% over the last 70 years while some populations of oceanic white tip shark populations have been reduced by an estimated 98%. Human appetite for shark fin soup and seafood is pushing many shark species closer to extinction as shark finning and bycatch (incidental catch while fishing for other species like swordfish or tuna) continue to decimate shark populations around the world.
