SAFEGUARDING
MEDITERRANEAN SHARKS AD RAYS
OUTREACH
UPTAKE
WHAT IS LIFE EU SHARKS
A LIFE project co-funded by the European Union engaging citizens and marine professionals in Croatia, France, Italy, Slovenia and Spain to safeguard the most endangered group of marine fish in Europe.
LIFE European Sharks started in October 2023 and will end in September 2027.
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WHAT WE ARE DOING
LIFE EU Sharks promotes the conservation of protected species and encourages responsible and sustainable interactions with sharks and rays by:
1
Training fisheries officers and fishers to reduce mortality of protected species, promoting compliance with EU regulations and improving the quality of data collection.
2
Testing with fishers voluntary actions to reduce shark and ray bycatch mortality, with an assessment of the socio-economic impact of these solutions.
3
Promoting shark and ray catch&release among recreational fishers, and better handling techniques to increase post-release survival.
4
Reducing the risk of entanglement in lost fishing gear with the cooperation of divers.
5
Tapping into the knowledge of sea users to map important areas for breeding, feeding and migration of shark and rays, and stimulate authorities, policy makers and communities to implement conservation measures.
6
Increasing public understanding of the essential role that sharks and rays play in the Mediterranean ecosystem, changing the public image from ‘dangerous’ to ‘endangered’, and encouraging the consumption of local and more sustainable seafood.
have you seen
a shark or a ray?
please share your sightings -online (or scan the QR code), use the paper form or get in touch by email or social media.
You can help identify and protect Important Shark and Ray Areas!
sighting form
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Social media
Any question? Get in touch:
info @ europeansharks.eu
About Mediterranean sharks and rays
1
Sharks in the Med
Around eighty species of sharks, rays and chimaeras - the elasmobranchs - live in the Mediterranean Sea.
Unlike any other fish, their skeleton is made of cartilage and they grow slowly, live long lives and produce few young, often after gestations of many months, many of which will not reach adulthood.
2
Dangerous or endangered?
For millions of years, sharks and rays have played a key balancing role in the Mediterranean sea. But feeding and breeding areas are increasingly degraded or occupied by man.
Sharks and rays are caught by the thousands, albeit accidentally. In just a few decades, more than half of the elasmobranch species have become endangered.
The balance between predator and prey is now broken.
3
Are sharks protected?
Some thirty species of sharks and rays are protected throughout most of the Mediterranean basin and cannot be caught or landed.
Many more species are considered endangered by the IUCN, however, but are not automatically protected: this includes commercial species that have declined dramatically.
Their protection relies on our behaviour and choices.
The Project
