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  • Guy Harvey
  • Celebrity

Florida enacts ban on the take of tiger and hammerhead sharks

By: Pete Thomas, GrindTV.com

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has approved a ban on the harvest of tiger sharks and three species of hammerhead sharks in state waters, beginning Jan. 1, 2012.

The measure was approved Wednesday during meetings in Key Largo. The news is sure to please shark conservationists and scientists who had grown increasingly concerned that too many large, slow-to-reproduce sharks were being killed.

(A tiger shark requires 15 years to reach sexual maturity.)

The measure also prohibits the possession, sale and exchange of tiger sharks, as well as great, scalloped and smooth hammerhead sharks caught in adjacent federal waters.

Catch-and-release fishing for these sharks still will be allowed in state waters.

Florida waters provide essential shark habitat and several other species already enjoy catch-and-release-only protection in state waters.

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Our Work & Members

Registered 'Shark-Free' marinas participate in a voluntary program under which they agree to prohibit sharks from being landed at their facility. Working in tandem with businesses and fishermen we develop sensible protocols under which threatened species of shark are permitted to recover and replenish their populations. We also work with policy makers at local, state and federal levels to create and enforce community conscious policy and increase the awareness of the need to protect our sharks and our ocean.

Fishing from a Shark-Free Marina

As a fisherman you should know what it means to launch from an SFMI registered marina. Catching non-endangered shark is not illegal or prohibited however our members encourage sport shark-fishermen to exercise catch-and-release techniques. Some SFMI registered marinas are also access points for tagging programs and catch & release shark-fishing tournaments. Catch-and-release fishing techniques represent a significant step in protecting valuable marine resources as well as providing valuable data for research organizations.

Why SFMI is important

Currently between 60 and 100 million sharks are slaughtered worldwide each year. This massive cull of apex predators is unsustainable and poses a serious threat to the oceans health. The recreational fishery in the United States alone kills tens of thousands of sharks per year, removing them from an already struggling breeding population. Worldwide, the numbers are staggering. Shark-Free Marinas will reduce the mortal take of sharks and encourage responsible use of our ocean.

Who We Are

The Shark-Free Marina Initiative is a project of the The Pegasus Foundation and the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation. It is strongly supported by Fishpond Inc., Mote Marine Laboratory, The Fisheries Conservation Foundation and the Cape Eleuthera Institute.