Sharks are caught in all fisheries, some targeted and some labeled as by-catch, from bottom and deep-sea trawling, purse seining and longlining. By-catch is defined as ´´the unintentional or incidental capture of non-target species during fishing operations´´.

Shark by-catch in purse seine fisheries targeting tuna totaled up to 1,500 tons in 2004.

By-catch is a highly subjective definition. For example, the Spanish scientific report used at the ICCAT shark stock assessment of 2008, is that their longliners target swordfish, and sharks are considered a by-catch. Oceana research found that sharks are indeed targeted by Spanish and Portuguese longliners through use of special bait, steel lines and special lights next to the hooks.

The distinction is very important, as commercially targeted shark fisheries must be managed with quotas and other instruments according to the Common Fisheries Policy, as is done for swordfish and tuna. But in fact, today many shark catches are not managed at all as they are mostly still regarded as low value bycatch and catch limits are almost non-existent.

Also, shark by-catch must be reduced as close to zero as possible. Targeted or not, shark catches of European longliners consist between 50% and 90% of the total catch. Enough reason to manage shark fisheries to ensure the survival of these species!