The International Union for the Conservation of Nature added 11 species of sharks and other elasmobranchs found off the coast of Ireland, including the massive basking shark, to its “Red List” of species that face an imminent threat of extinction.
Basking sharks, which were once hunted to catastrophic levels because of their oily livers, are the second-largest species of shark in the world. Adults routinely reach 20 to 25 feet in length — with sightings of animals reaching up to 40 feet — and can weigh up to five tons. These immense sharks pose no threat to humans and primarily feed on plankton.
“Although the targeted fisheries have ceased, population recovery is known to be very slow in certain species which were previously exploited, such as the basking shark, due to low productivity and late age at maturity,” Ireland’s Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht said in an official statement published by the Irish Times.
The analysis, which looked at 58 species of sharks, rays and other cartilaginous species found that populations for 11 of those species, including Portuguese dogfish, porbeagles and angel sharks, had reached critical levels.
Another 25 species were identified as “vulnerable or near threatened.”
