U.S. Scalloped Hammerheads Officially Overfished in Atlantic

The non-profit group Shark Advocates International has brought to light a new study conducted by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), which has added Scalloped Hammerheads to the growing list of overfished species in the U.S. Atlantic.

Law requires that following the study, which revealed Scalloped Hammerhead populations down almost 80 percent, the NMFS has two years to develop a plan to restore the species to its original size.

"We welcome the government's long-awaited determination about the population status of scalloped hammerhead sharks and are eager for the next steps toward safeguarding this exceptionally vulnerable species," said Shark Advocates International President Sonja Fordham, also a member of the NMFS Advisory Committee. “We urge the fisheries service to treat needed hammerhead conservation as top priorities."

The Scalloped Hammerhead is on the list of the most threatened migratory shark species- an independent study in 2009 estimated that the population at the time was less than half that is required for sustainable fishing and that catches were too high to reverse the decline even within ten years. In addition to mandated government action, Shark Advocates international is asking for an immediate prohibition of Hammerhead fishing and “smarter” fishing tools to lower incidental capture.