REVIEW
Emergent research and priorities for shark and ray conservation
Salvador J. Jorgensen1,2,49,*,#, Fiorenza Micheli3,4,#, Timothy D. White3,5, Kyle S. Van Houtan1,6, Joanna Alfaro-Shigueto7,8, Samantha Andrzejaczek3, Natalie S. Arnoldi3, Julia K. Baum9, Barbara Block3, Gregory L. Britten10, Cheryl Butner3, Susana Caballero11, Diego Cardeñosa12, Taylor K. Chapple13, Shelley Clarke14, Enric Cortés15, Nicholas K. Dulvy16, Sarah Fowler17, Austin J. Gallagher18, Eric Gilman19, Brendan J. Godley20, Rachel T. Graham21, Neil Hammerschlag22, Alastair V. Harry23,24, Michael R. Heithaus25, Melanie Hutchinson26, Charlie Huveneers27, Chris G. Lowe28, Luis O. Lucifora29, Tracy MacKeracher30, Jeffrey C. Mangel7,31, Ana Paula Barbosa Martins30, Douglas J. McCauley32,33, Loren McClenachan34, Christopher Mull30, Lisa J. Natanson35, Daniel Pauly36, Diana A. Pazmiño37,38, Jennifer C. A. Pistevos39,40, Nuno Queiroz41, George Roff42, Brendan D. Shea18,43, Colin A. Simpfendorfer37, David W. Sims44,45,46, Christine Ward-Paige47, Boris Worm48, Francesco Ferretti43
1Monterey Bay Aquarium, Monterey, CA, 93940, USA
2UC Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA
3Hopkins Marine Station, Stanford University, Pacific Grove, CA, 93950, USA
4Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions, Pacific Grove, CA, 93950, USA
5Global Fishing Watch, Washington, DC, 20036, USA
6Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC, 27708, USA
7ProDelphinus, Lima, 15074, Peru
8Universidad Cientifica del Sur, Lima, 15067, Peru
9Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, V8P 5C2, Canada
10Program in Atmospheres, Oceans, and Climate, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
11Laboratorio de Ecología Molecular de Vertebrados Acuáticos (LEMVA), Biological Sciences Department, Universidad de los Andes, Bogota, 111711, Colombia
12Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA
13Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station (COMES), Oregon State University, Newport, OR, 97365, USA
14Sasama Consulting, Shizuoka 428-0211 Japan
15NOAA Fisheries, Southeast Fisheries Science Center, Panama City, FL, 32408, USA
16Earth to Ocean Research Group, Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, V5A 1S6, Canada
17Save Our Seas Foundation, Geneva, 1201, Switzerland
18Beneath the Waves, Herndon, VA, 20172, USA
19The Lyell Centre, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh EH14 4ES, UK
20Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwal,l TR10 9FE, UK
21MarAlliance, Innova Center, Ciudad del Saber, Panama City, 0801, Panama
22University of Miami, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, Miami, FL, 33149, USA
23Fisheries and Agriculture Resource Management, Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, Hillarys, Western Australia, 6025, Australia
24Centre for Sustainable Aquatic Ecosystems, Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, 6150, Australia
25Florida International University, Miami, FL, 33181, USA
26Joint Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research, Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, Honolulu, HI, 96818, USA
27Marine & Coastal Research Consortium, College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University, Adelaide, SA, 5042, Australia
28California State University Long Beach, Long Beach, CA, 90840, USA
29Instituto Nacional de Limnología, Universidad Nacional del Litoral, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Santa Fe, S3001XAI, Argentina
30Integrated Fisheries Laboratory, Dalhousie University, NS, B3H 4R2, Canada
31University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
32Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, 93106, USA
33Marine Science Institute, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, 93117, USA
34Department of History and School of Environmental Studies, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC V8P 5C2, Canada
35NOAA/NMFS, Narragansett, RI, 02874, USA
36Sea Around Us, Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada
37Centre for Sustainable Tropical Fisheries and Aquaculture, College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia
38Galápagos Science Center, Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Isla San Cristóbal, Galápagos, 200150, Ecuador
39Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL) Research University, Paris, 75006, France
40Laboratoire d’Excellence CORAIL, Papetoai, Moorea, French Polynesia
41CIBIO/InBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, 4485-661, Portugal
42School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia Brisbane, QLD, 4072, Australia
43Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, 24061, USA
44Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, Plymouth, PL1 2PB, UK
45Ocean and Earth Science, National Oceanography Centre Southampton, University of Southampton, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK
46Centre for Biological Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK
47eOceans, Halifax, NS, B3J 3K5, Canada
48Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, B3H 4R2, Canada
49Present address: Institute of Marine Science, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, 95060, USA
ABSTRACT: Over the past 4 decades there has been a growing concern for the conservation status of elasmobranchs (sharks and rays). In 2002, the first elasmobranch species were added to Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Less than 20 yr later, there were 39 species on Appendix II and 5 on Appendix I. Despite growing concern, effective conservation and management remain challenged by a lack of data on population status for many species, human−wildlife interactions, threats to population viability, and the efficacy of conservation approaches. We surveyed 100 of the most frequently published and cited experts on elasmobranchs and, based on ranked responses, prioritized 20 research questions on elasmobranch conservation. To address these questions, we then convened a group of 47 experts from 35 institutions and 12 countries. The 20 questions were organized into the following broad categories: (1) status and threats, (2) population and ecology, and (3) conservation and management. For each section, we sought to synthesize existing knowledge, describe consensus or diverging views, identify gaps, and suggest promising future directions and research priorities. The resulting synthesis aggregates an array of perspectives on emergent research and priority directions for elasmobranch conservation.
KEY WORDS: Elasmobranch · Conservation priorities · Sharks · Rays
REVIEW
Emergent research and priorities for shark and ray conservation
