Sharks: Killers or Victims?

How does the word “shark” make you feel? - Afraid? Maybe even angry?

How about awe? Appreciation? -Probably not.

Most of you likely have an image similar to this pop up in your head.

Official Jaws Poster

And that’s not your fault. Media coverage of shark attacks and movie like Jaws, Sharknado, and The Shallows tell us that sharks are scary man-eaters, the bad guys.

Now how does the number 100 million make you feel? If this represented the number of dollars you earned in a year, you would be pretty happy, right? But when this represents the number of brutal deaths caused by humans each year, it becomes incredibly sad.

Humans kill over 100 million sharks each year for a variety of reasons. Most commonly, people cut the fins off of sharks and throw them back into the water alive to helplessly lay upon the bottom of the ocean slowly dying. The fins are then used in an expensive Chinese delicacy called shark fin soup. The most baffling part of all this is that fins themselves add little to no flavor to the soup.

Photo: Shark Stewards

Unfortunately, people overlook the importance of sharks in the ocean. They keep the ocean in check by feeding on sick and injured animals. They play a crucial role in the ocean’s ecosystem and ensure the health of this amazing resource. Now, they are also top predators, just like tigers are. You better believe if people were cutting the feet off of tigers and leaving them to die we would demand that this be stopped!

Except we feel more distant from sharks because we’re told they attack humans. Truth is, sharks attacks are RARE. In 2015 only 6 people were killed by sharks while around 150 people were killed by…wait for it…falling coconuts! That’s right, coconuts are more dangerous than sharks. Or how about mosquitos at 800,000 people a year. Even champagne corks kill 24 people a year. Want a more dangerous animals? Take your pick! Cows, horses, hippos, even man’s best friend. All more likely to kill you. The real killer is us. Remember that when we enter the ocean we are guests in their home and need to be aware of that. You wouldn’t go into a tiger’s territory without some level of caution. It’s all about putting things into perspective. 

List of things more likely to kill you than sharks: https://kafe.com/news/25-shocking-things-more-likely-to-kill-you-than-a-shark

Photo: Neil Hammerschlag

So what can you do to save sharks before they disappear from our oceans!? Well for one you can spread the truth about sharks. Stop supporting the notion that they are terrible man-eaters. You can also get on-line and sign a petition to tell our government that we don’t think it’s ok to kill sharks for their fins. Right now I ask you to click on the link below and sign Oceana’s petition to ban shark fin trade in the U.S. All it takes is 2 minutes to make a difference.

Take Action: https://oceana.org/take-action

A world without sharks…now THAT’S scary. Sustainable is Obtainable. 

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-Rachael Coccia