The «SHARKS, ECOLOGY, FISHERIES AND PROBLEMS» conference held last 25 and 27th of April, organised by Ecologistas en Acción of Cadiz and the University Association «Submarinists in Action» had a high attendance, with the objective of informing on the current state of shark and mantaray populations, as well as the problems they are faced with.
The conference counted with the participation of experts from diverse national entities such as Cadiz University and the Spanish Oceanographers Association, international ones such as the UCIN and the Shark Alliance, and NGOs like SUBMON and Ecologistas en Acción. As well as the theory sessions that were of much interest to all the atendees, a series of practical sessions were held in the Cadiz quayside fish market with the collaboration of the management and fishermen, with an end to closen the university sector to the fishing sector, which is the main agent involved in problems related to the conservation of shark populations, as this is the sector that exerts the most pressure on them.
Most species of shark have played the role of predator in marine environments for the whole of the natural history of the planet. Unfortunately these days the intense pressure inflicted by modern fishing fleets makes them one of the most endangered species in our oceans. Their slow growth, their late maturity and their limited offspring makes them especially vulnerable to overfishing.
Conservation of sharks is of vital importance to the health of marine ecosystems because, as large predators, the play a far-reaching role in the maintenance of the genetic richness of the oceans and the process of natural selection. At the same time, the advancement of the study and divulgation of their biology, ecology and customs is equally important for their proper management and conservation.
The conference provoked great interest, to the point that the 50 places offered to begin with were full in less than 48 hours, with waiting lists of more than 40 people on the third day, so we were forced to extend them to 100 places that were fully booked. The general assesssment of them was very positive, both for the attendees and the organisers, who saw that there were no absentees in assistance to the practical sessions at the market even at 5.00am on a Monday, a delay in the arrival to port of part of the fleet caused some of the attendees not to be able to carry out the practical sessions (to do with the directive), which didn't lull their interest, as they confirmed their assistance to another session.
What's more, the attendees enjoyed a lunch, consisting of a culinary sample and a picnic based on ecological agricultural products from local groups in Jerez and Sanlucar inside the «Boost to the Consumption of Ecological Products» project that Cadiz's Ecologistas en Acción is carrying out. The quality of the products and their excellent preparation was made patently obvious by the comments of interest and praise to the organisation by over 100 of the participants.
One of the most positive results extracted from the conference has been the interest some of the participants demonstrated when it came to carry out a voluntary exercise at the market, with an end to obtaining real, relevant data on the shark fisheries in the Bay of Cadiz. The volunteers at the market would consist of small groups of 2-3 people that were to regularly assist at auctions for the collection of biological, biogeographic, economic, commercial and processing data; as well as tabling relations with the sectors involved that allow us to find a joint solution to the conservation of sharks and skates.
