| Kingdom | Phylum | Class | Order | Family |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ANIMALIA | CHORDATA | CHONDRICHTHYES | LAMNIFORMES | ALOPIIDAE |
| Scientific Name: | Alopias vulpinus | |||
| Species Authority | (Bonnaterre, 1788) | |||
Common Name/s:
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| Red List Category & Criteria: | Data Deficient ver 3.1 | |||
| Year Assessed: | 2002 | |||
| Assessor/s | Goldman, K.J. & members of the Shark Specialist Group | |||
| Evaluator/s: | Fowler, S. & Musick, J.A. (Shark Red List Authority) | |||
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Justification: This widely distributed continental shelf species is an important economic species in many areas, and has been taken in large numbers as a targeted species and landed bycatch. The California drift gill net fishery provided strong evidence that A. vulpinus is highly vulnerable to overfishing in a short period of time, with the subpopulation having an estimated reduction of > 50% over three generations. The causes of reduction are reversible and understood, and the cause (heavy fishing pressure, especially on adults and subadults) has largely ceased. The subpopulation has made a near full recovery to just below 50% of the initial subpopulation size. However, it is clear the species depends on adequate management measures, and would otherwise be at risk of overfishing. A lack of fisheries data from other locations, incomplete knowledge of stock structures, and uncertainty over life history parameters make it impossible to determine population size or fluctuations elsewhere. Nonetheless, the high value of the species and its exploitation by unmanaged fisheries, combined with its biological vulnerability, indicates that at least some, if not most, subpopulations in other parts of the world are likely to be equally or more seriously at risk than that in California and, unlike the Californian stock, are not the subject of management enabling the population to rebuild. |
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| History: |
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| Range Description: | Occurs in oceanic and coastal areas in warm seas. The species is thought to be virtually circumglobal (Compagno 1984). |
| Countries: |
Native:
Albania; Algeria; Argentina; Australia; Bahamas; Belgium; Brazil; British Indian Ocean Territory; Canada (British Columbia); Chile; China; Colombia; Cuba; Cyprus; Côte d'Ivoire; Denmark; Djibouti; Ecuador (Galápagos); Egypt; Faroe Islands; France; French Guiana; French Polynesia; Gabon; Gambia; Germany; Greece; Guinea; Guinea-Bissau; Guyana; India; Indonesia; Ireland; Israel; Italy; Japan; Kenya; Kiribati; Korea, Republic of; Lebanon; Liberia; Libyan Arab Jamahiriya; Maldives; Malta; Mauritania; Mauritius; Mexico; Monaco; Montenegro; Morocco; Mozambique; Namibia; Netherlands; New Caledonia; New Zealand; Nicaragua; Norway; Oman; Pakistan; Panama; Philippines; Portugal; Réunion; Senegal; Sierra Leone; Slovenia; Somalia; South Africa; Spain (Canary Is.); Sri Lanka; Suriname; Sweden; Syrian Arab Republic; Taiwan, Province of China; Tanzania, United Republic of; Thailand; Trinidad and Tobago; Tunisia; Turkey; United Kingdom; United States (Hawaiian Is.); Uruguay; Venezuela; Viet Nam; Western Sahara; Yemen
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| FAO Marine Fishing Areas: |
Native:
Atlantic – eastern central; Atlantic – western central; Atlantic – northeast; Atlantic – northwest; Atlantic – southeast; Atlantic – southwest; Indian Ocean – western; Mediterranean and Black Sea; Pacific – eastern central; Pacific – northeast; Pacific – southeast
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| Population Trend: |
Unknown
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| Habitat and Ecology: | A. vulpinus is both coastal and epipelagic. It is found in the waters of continental and insular shelves, and has also been recorded far from land in temperate to tropical waters. Young individuals are often found close inshore and in shallow bays. Depth ranges from the surface to 366 m. The thresher shark is an active, strong swimmer, sometimes leaping out of the water. The species feeds mostly on small schooling fishes, including mackerels, bluefishes, clupeids, needlefishes, lancetfishes and lanternfishes; also squids, octopuses and pelagic crustaceans, and rarely seabirds (Compagno 1984). |
| Systems: | Marine |
| Major Threat(s): | The thresher shark is an important economic species in many areas and has been taken in large numbers as a targeted and landed bycatch species. The meat is highly prized fresh for human consumption but is also eaten smoked and dried salted; the fins are valuable for shark-fin soup; the hide is usable for leather and the liver oil can be processed for vitamins (Compagno 1984). The California drift gill net fishery provided strong evidence that A. vulpinus is highly vulnerable to overfishing in a short period of time. |
| Citation: | Goldman, K.J. & members of the Shark Specialist Group 2002. Alopias vulpinus. In: IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 23 November 2008. |
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