Sharks are caught as bycatch in billions of fishing operations globally and are targeted for their fins, with welfare suffering on a vast scale alongside ecological collapse.
Sharks caught in longlines and trawl nets drown slowly if unable to swim. Finning causes prolonged suffering through blood loss and inability to breathe adequately. The time from capture to death for bycaught sharks can be measured in hours. The scale of shark mortality in fisheries is enormous. Sharks have been shown to have a degree of nervous system complexity suggesting nociception and potentially pain experience. The welfare harm in shark fisheries is one of the largest unaddressed issues in marine animal welfare.