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           Genetic Analyses Show Endangered Species in Shark Fin Soup

   by Zulima Palacio

   Each year, fishermen catch millions of sharks, cut off their fins, and
   dump the bodies into the ocean to die. The fins are used to make shark
   fin soup, an Asian delicacy sold in many countries. Recently, a team of
   scientists and environmental groups collected soup from restaurants
   across the United States and analyzed the soups' genetic make-up. They
   found endangered species on the menu.
   More than 73 million sharks are killed every year, mostly for their
   fins, to make shark fin soup, industry experts and conservationists
   say. Shark fin soup is a common offering in many Asian restaurants
   around the world.
   ''[1]The Field Museum in Chicago and the [2]Pew Environment Group
   looked at 51 soup samples in [3]14 U.S. cities. DNA analyses identified
   eight shark species, some of them endangered.

   "The major finding is that there are endangered species in shark fin
   soup sold in the United States.  One sample taken from Boston had
   scalloped hammerhead," said Liz Karan, who heads the global shark
   conservation campaign at the Pew Environment Group.  "Scalloped
   hammerhead is considered endangered by the International Union of
   Conservation's red list of endangered species."
   Shark finning - cutting off the fins while the shark is still alive and
   throwing the body overboard - is banned in the United States. But shark
   fishing and the import of fins are allowed.  So far, only five U.S.
   states have banned shark fin products.
   "Overfishing of sharks is a global problem.  Hong Kong is currently the
   hub of the shark fin trade, and there are about 80 countries that
   contribute to that trade," said Karan.
   ''Over the last 60  years, the world's shark population has plummetted
   by nearly 80 percent, according to a study by the Pew Environment
   Group. The group believes sanctuaries for sharks could help them.
   "They have a very long life span and often don't reach sexual maturity
   until their teens or 20s and, when they do reproduce, some species only
   have a couple of pups at the time. So their ability to repopulate and
   recover from overfishing pressures is very small," said Karan.
   The [4]Humane Society International leads one of the largest campaigns
   to protect sharks. Iris Ho is the wildlife campaigns manager.
   "Over 90 percent of the world's shark fin consumption takes place in
   China, and Hong Kong alone handles about 50 percent of the global trade
   in shark fins," she said.
   The Chinese government has announced it will stop serving shark fin
   soup at official functions. Ho says outside of Asia, the U.S. is the
   largest market.

   "According to government records, in 2010, 34 metric tons of shark fins
   were imported to the U.S.," she said.
   Sharks have been around for 400 million years, pre-dating the
   dinosaurs.  But scientists believe they may be unable to survive this
   ongoing assault.
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   [5]http://www.voanews.com/content/genetic_analyses_show_endangered_spec
   ies_in_shark_fin_soup/1488971.html

References

   1. http://fieldmuseum.org/
   2. http://www.pewenvironment.org/news-room/press-releases/new-dna-study-reveals-fins-of-endangered-shark-in-us-soups-85899409748
   3. http://www.pewenvironment.org/uploadedFiles/PEG/Newsroom/Press_Release/FINAL_Pew_SharkSoup_Chart.pdf
   4. http://www.hsi.org/
   5. http://www.voanews.com/content/genetic_analyses_show_endangered_species_in_shark_fin_soup/1488971.html