ANN/THE STAR – Sharks are sometimes unintentionally caught in fishing nets, even though the fishing industry is not catching them on purpose. These accidental catches harm sharks in the same way, even if they’re not the main focus.
To prevent these situations, steps are currently being taken to safeguard sharks, by designating the waters near Pekan, Pahang, specifically the area off Kuala Pahang, as a conservation zone.
According to the Fisheries Department, shark landings in 2022 did not exceed 0.5 per cent of total marine fish landings, at just 4,578 metric tonnes out of the total 1.3 million tonnes.
“This number indicates that sharks are not the target fish species in catches, and they are just being trapped because of the use of fishing tools such as trawl nets,” said the department in a statement in conjunction with Shark Awareness Day on July 14.
Malaysian waters are known to be rich with diverse species of sharks.
According to the Fisheries Department, a total of 68 species have been found in our waters, with Sarawak being the state that landed the most sharks because of the extensive fishing area and suitable habitat there.
“In addition, efficient resource management, marine ecosystems and fertile coastal areas also contribute to the sustainability of this lifeform in Malaysia,” the department said.
Among the protected shark species are the great hammerhead (Sphyrna mokarran), winghead shark (Eusphyra blochii), smooth hammerhead (Sphyrna zygaena), oceanic whitetip shark (Carcharhinus longimanus) and the whale shark (Rhincodon typus).
From research conducted from 2018 to March 2021, the Fisheries Department said the waters of Kuala Pahang had been identified as the natural breeding habitat of three species of sharks and 13 species of rays.
“This area will be proposed as a conservation zone where no fishing activities can be carried out in the surrounding area,” said the department.
According to a research paper by the Marine Fishery Resources Development and Management Department of the South-East Asian Fisheries Development Centre that supported the conservation proposal, sharks and rays were not the targets of fishing activity.
Instead, they were merely the by-catch when certain types of equipment are used, such as trawling and drift nets.
“The total landing of sharks and rays contributed less than two per cent of total marine landings. In the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia, Pahang generally recorded the highest landing of sharks and rays compared with other states,” the study found.
It said a study was also conducted in 2016 and 2017 in Pahang in a collaboration between the Institute of Agricultural and Food Policy Studies at Universiti Putra Malaysia and the South-East Asian Fisheries Development Centre.
“In this study, fish caught using the monsoon season trawl net, locally known as ‘pukat tunda musim tengkujuh’, at the Fisheries Development Authority of Malaysia’s Kuala Pahang jetty were sampled.
“It was found that many juvenile sharks and rays were caught together with other catches and sold as low-value fish at lower prices. This showed that Kuala Pahang waters are potentially nursery grounds for sharks and rays,” it added.
From November 2018 to March 2021, Ismat conducted a study in Kuala Pahang waters during the monsoon season to identify the nursery ground of sharks and rays, to determine their catch composition as a consequence of trawl activity and to certify the variety of marine catches from the use of the monsoon season trawl net.
“From this study, a total of 6,408.06 kilogrammes (kg) marine catches was recorded comprising commercial fish (1,594.01kg), shrimp (591.72kg), crab (15.97kg), shark (83.37kg), ray (322.74kg) and low-value fish (3,788.96kg),” said Ismat.
The study found that in terms of percentage, the highest landing was contributed by low-value fish at 59.13 per cent, followed by commercial fish (24.88 per cent), shrimp (9.23 per cent), rays (5.04 per cent) and sharks (1.3 per cent).
“Sharks and rays recorded small landings throughout the study due to their small individual size. Three species of sharks from order Orectolobiformes (family Hemiscyllidae) and 13 species of rays from order Myliobatiformes (family Dasyatidae and Gymnuridae) were recorded,” it added.
Based on the findings, the study area in Kuala Pahang waters proved to be a natural nursery ground for at least three species of sharks and 13 species of rays.
“These findings showed that Kuala Pahang waters especially in coastal areas are an important feeding ground and also a natural nursery ground for at least three species of sharks and 13 species of rays.
“There is a possibility that juvenile sharks and rays inhabit the study area not only during monsoon season but throughout the year,” the study found. – Ong Han Sean
