[CINC] Fwd: How much longer will sharks and nautiluses survive?

[Catherine French]

Sincerely,

Catherine French
cfrench1366 at aol.com
805.815.3523


-----Original Message-----
From: Humane Society International <info at hsi.org>
To: cfrench1366 at aol.com
Sent: Thu, Sep 10, 2009 11:15 am
Subject: How much longer will sharks and nautiluses survive?















Only one day left to ask for CITES protection for species threatened by trade.
Send your comments by this Friday.





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September 10, 2009

Dear Catherine,















© NOAA; Lee R. Berger 









 

Tell the FWS: 

Increase protection for sharks at CITES. 

 Then, ask them to do the same for nautiluses.

Submit your comments today! The deadline is this Friday, September 11.




 








In the lead-up to the 15th meeting of Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in March 2010, I am writing to ask for your help to increase protection for sharks and nautiluses against unregulated trade. 

Sharks and nautiluses share a long history—they have both existed for hundreds of millions of years. Some species of shark have been around since before the time of the dinosaurs. Nautiluses have remained unchanged for so long that they are often considered to be “living fossils.” However, the continued survival of these animals is now in doubt.

Every year, millions of sharks suffer painful deaths from
 the cruel and wasteful shark fin trade due to the demand for “shark fin soup,” a delicacy in Asia. Sharks are particularly vulnerable because they are slow to mature and reproduce and have relatively few offspring. Several species, including hammerheads, oceanic whitetip, dusky and sandbar sharks, are in sharp decline and need protection from trade.

Nautiluses are also in high demand, mainly because of the unique coiled shell that these cephalopods call home. They are traded live or as shell products or jewelry. More than 579,000 specimens were imported into the U.S. between 2005 and 2008. With no regulations to protect nautiluses from trade, many populations have been overfished.

But, there is hope. The United States is currently considering proposals to add nautiluses and several shark species to CITES Appendix II. With this classification, these creatures will be shielded from the negative effects of international trade.

TAKE ACTION

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service is accepting comments from the public ahead of the upcoming CITES meeting. Please take the following actions to ensure that sharks and nautiluses are given the protection they need at CITES:

 Urge the U.S. to add vulnerable shark species to the list of sharks on CITES Appendix II


Tell the U.S. to give nautiluses CITES protection by submitting a proposal to add them to Appendix II of CITES.

After you've taken action to help protect sharks and nautiluses, be sure to tell your friends and family how they can help other s
pecies threatened by trade, too.

Thanks for all you do for animals.

Sincerely,

Andrew Rowan
President & CEO 
Humane Society International

P.S. If you haven't already done so, sign our petition to President Obama and send comments regarding CITES protection of polar bears to the U.S. government by this Friday.

P.P.S. Bobcats are at risk, too, so ask the U.S. to maintain CITES protection for them as well!

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