Putting a number on Atlantic shark fishing for the first time, an advocacy group reported that more than 1.3 million migratory sharks were caught in 2008, a finding that activists are using to press for international catch limits.
The main catches – blue sharks and short-fin makos – are not endangered, but most other migratory sharks caught in the Atlantic are classified as threatened with extinction by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Oceana released the new report Monday as negotiators from four dozen countries are meeting in Paris to consider fishing restrictions for a range of marine species that travel in the Atlantic, including sharks, bluefin tuna and sea turtles. The meeting, known as the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas, started last week and will conclude Saturday.
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