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Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) provide various levels of protection for marine ecosystems ranging from habitat protection to comprehensive protection of all biodiversity from the effects of human disturbance and use. All forms of MPAs make a contribution to the protection and management of biodiversity. The highest level of protection generally is provided in ‘no-take’ MPAs, where the intention is to fully protect species and their habitats from the removal of flora, fauna or the substrate.

In 2006, 2007 and 2008 TRAFFIC reported on total shark3 catch and the top 20 shark-catching countries (Lack and Sant, 2006; Anon, 2007; Lack and Sant, 2008). Those analyses have been based on the Fishstat Capture Production Database of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The purpose of these analyses has been to monitor overall trends in shark catch and to identify the main shark-catching countries. TRAFFIC’s focus on shark catch has been prompted by the growing international concern for the status of shark stocks. This concern stems from the recognized vulnerability of sharks to overfishing because of their slow growth and their relatively late age of maturity and low fecundity. In addition, many species of sharks are top order predators and play an important role in marine ecosystems and it is only through the adoption of ecosystem-based management (EBM) principles, including the application of the precautionary approach, that shark species can be managed sustainably and unintended ecosystem effects avoided.