Sharks, rays and marine protected areas: A critical evaluation of current perspectives

Abstract

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are increasingly advocated for the conservation and management of sharks and rays. However, substantial uncertainty remains regarding which species can benefit from MPAs. Meanwhile, area‐focused protection targets have spurred recent and rapid gains in the creation of large MPAs, many of which carry vague objectives set by a diverse group of stakeholders with potentially different notions of “success.” Here, we capture and critically evaluate current views on the use of MPAs for shark and ray conservation. Through interviews with scientists, MPA managers, fisheries experts, conservation practitioners, advocates and policy experts (n = 53), we demonstrate a variety of perspectives regarding: (a) the effectiveness of MPAs as a tool for shark and ray conservation; (b) which factors influence the success of MPAs for sharks and rays; and (c) the desired outcomes of these MPAs. While MPAs created specifically for sharks and rays were viewed to be slightly more effective than regular MPAs as a tool for shark and ray conservation, both were generally considered insufficient in isolation. Despite greater emphasis on social success factors (e.g., local support) over biophysical success factors (e.g., size), biological outcomes (e.g., increased abundance) were prioritized over social outcomes (e.g., livelihood benefits). We argue that a stronger focus on achieving social outcomes can enhance the potential for MPAs to benefit sharks and rays. In revealing current thinking regarding the drivers and indicators of MPA success for sharks and rays, the results of this study can inform efforts to conserve and manage these species.

Shark movement strategies influence poaching risk and can guide enforcement decisions in a large, remote marine protected area

“…core space use areas, breeding grounds). While the perceived ‘success’ of MPAs for conserving sharks and rays is very much location and goal specific (MacKeracher, Diedrich, & Simpfendorfer, 2018), some MPAs have been shown to benefit tropical shark species conservation (Knip, Heupel, & Simpfendorfer, 2012).…”

Spatially congruent sites of importance for global shark and ray biodiversity

“…The low level of spatial congruency between the species richness measures also means that a relatively small fraction of the world's ocean area could provide a tractable focal point for global shark and ray conservation. However, we caution that this kind of focal conservation strategy would still need to account for the opportunities and challenges presented by differing social, economic and cultural contexts [48,49], in addition to the abundance, dispersal abilities, and activity patterns of the wide range of shark and ray species [50].…”

Mitigation of Elasmobranch Bycatch in Trawlers: A Case Study in Indian Fisheries

“…Area-based strategies like Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are widely used in marine conservation (Shiffman and Hammerschlag, 2016;MacKeracher et al, 2019) and are generally advocated for shark protection (e.g., shark sanctuaries; Ward-Paige, 2017). However, such strategies have had little success in India where they tend to be strict MPAs with little inclusion of the fishing community in the design, implementation or access to the area, leading to violations of MPA rules and conflict between fishers and managers (Rajagopalan, 2009;Bijoor et al, 2018;Muralidharan and Rai, 2020).…”