Understanding The Impact Sharks Are Having On Fishing

Shark depredation – the full or partial removal of a hooked fish by a shark before it is landed – is is being increasingly reported in many countries around the world, including the United States. So while sharks often terrify those who decide to go to the beach for a swim or surf session, they often annoy recreational anglers and fishing guides. Most research on the human perception of sharks doesn’t focus on specific perceptions of stakeholder groups, such as those whose livelihoods depend on the fish they catch… or, rather, don’t catch thanks to the sharks.

Depredation is not unique to recreational fisheries, as commercial fisheries report this to be an issue as well, yet “how this impacts these groups remains largely unstudied and unknown, despite anecdotal evidence that such events may powerfully shape angling behavior,” state the authors of a new study led by University of Massachusetts Amherst PhD student Grace Casselberry. Casselberry and her team set out to study the impact sharks are having on recreational fishing experiences in the USA.

The study aimed to reach North American anglers over the age of 18 who had fished in saltwater and potentially interacted with sharks. Casselberry decided to capitalize on Discovery Channel’s Shark Week hype and launched the survey in July 2019, letting it run through the end of January 2020. Relying primarily on social media to help distribute the completely anonymous survey, the team also decided to promote it through e-mails and other traditional media outlets both in print, online, and radio. “The survey received a total of 640 responses, of which 541 were sufficiently completed and retained for data analysis. Most respondents were male (88.9%) between the ages of 25 and 44 (51.2%) and considered themselves avid anglers, with 67.8% fishing more than 30 times a year,” explained the authors. “Of those respondents, the vast majority were from the U.S. (98.8%), with 64.6% from the south, and 24.4% from the northeast. More than 77% of respondents had experienced shark depredation at least once in the last five years; of those, 90.3% (n = 374) had experienced more than one shark depredation, with 52.4% (n = 217) experiencing 20 or more depredation events in the last five years.”

But the most surprising find of the survey was the difference in emotions and perceptions of depredation between anglers and fishing guides. “We were able to demonstrate that an angler’s emotional response to depredation directly influenced their behavioral decisions. For both guides and anglers, a stronger negative emotional response translated to a greater likelihood of targeting and harvesting sharks recreationally in the future,” explained Casselberry. “A stronger positive emotional response increased the likelihood of changes to protect the target species, like moving to fish in a different area, starting to fish for a different species, or stopping fishing that day. While those who experienced depredation regularly were mainly concerned about mortality of their target species, they were also more likely to have a negative response to depredation which then makes them less likely to take actions to directly protect their target species and more likely to target sharks in retaliation.”

Overall, both anglers and guides had negative responses to depredation but the guides had a stronger negative response. Part of this, Casselberry believes, was because the guides experienced depredation much more frequently than anglers did as they are on the water more regularly than anglers. “Another factor influencing the emotional response is that a guide’s livelihood is tied to the health of their fishery and client satisfaction. If depredation is happening often and their clients are upset by it, that can affect their business. Our research showed that the more someone experienced depredation, the more likely they were to have a negative response. […] This shows that the solution to reducing the negativity is to reduce how often depredation is happening. Reducing depredation is going to be very fishery specific based on the fishing gears used, the behavior of the target species, and the behavior of the shark species, all of which can be influenced by where and when you are fishing.”

Shark depredation is a multifaceted issue that not only highlights shark conservation success but our increasing use of ocean resources and how it sometimes clashes with wildlife. Casselberry’s survey showed both emotional and behavioral responses to depredation varied significantly between guides and anglers, but both groups reported negative emotions surrounding depredation (especially fishing guides who expressed concern that shark depredation is a threat to their livelihood).

So, what can be done? Depredation isn’t an issue that will just magically disappear. Currently, complaints of depredation are handled differently depending where you are, sometimes with cooperation from state and local agencies. While the end goal for many stakeholders is to discover new management methods – including non-lethal shark controls, compensation, and preventing depredation through research and public relations – some believe lethal retaliation is the answer. Casselberry hopes this new research can be useful to managers to highlight what recreational anglers are concerned about when working towards solutions for shark-angler conflict. “Sharks are an important part of our ocean ecosystems and many species are protected because of population declines, but this protection has led to frustration during shark-angler interactions,” she said. “While the initial gut reaction of anglers to be sad, angry, and distressed after a depredation is understandable, it is important for anglers and guides to remember that harvesting sharks is unlikely to solve the problem. Shark-angler conflict is inevitable as certain shark populations recover and we continue to work towards restoring declining fish stocks.”