Last week, the world’s leading wildlife trade agreement increased protections for more than 70 species of sharks and rays. The move is a first for protecting shark and ray species from wildlife trade at the highest level.
In Uzbekistan on Friday, at a conference of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, or CITES, more than 100 governments voted to protect declining shark and ray species. The agreement includes a full international commercial trade ban for oceanic whitetip sharks, manta and devil rays, and whale sharks.
Luke Warwick, director of shark and ray conservation at the Wildlife Conservation Society, called the new protections a “landmark,” adding that they represented “the first time there’s been recognition that some sharks and rays are wildlife, just like iconic terrestrial wildlife like elephants or rhinos.”
In just the past 50 years, humans have caused a steep drop in the number of sharks and rays that swim the open oceans. Overfishing has driven a decline of 71 percent in these oceanic species, according to a study published in the journal Nature in 2021. Sharks and rays are fished for their fins, gill plates, meat and liver oil. They are also frequently caught as incidental catch during long-line fishing for tuna or swordfish, a method that involves thousands of baited hooks.
Three years ago, at the previous CITES conference, some shark and ray species were listed on Appendix 2, which increased the percentage of the fin trade managed by CITES to 90 percent from about 25 percent. But more than 37 percent of shark and ray species are threatened with extinction, and many species continue to decline. CITES, which went into effect in 1975, is the only international agreement with the authority to restrict the international trade behind these declines.
CITES regulates and controls the international trade in certain species, which are listed in three appendices, depending on the level of protection needed.
The shark species brought under a full international trade ban on Friday were moved from Appendix II to Appendix I, the strictest level of regulation. “These are some of the species that have been traded almost to extinction,” Mr. Warwick said.
The plant and animal species on Appendix I, which include tigers, gorillas and scarlet macaws, are considered endangered and most at risk of extinction.
Gulper sharks, smoothhound sharks and tope were newly listed under Appendix II, a lower level of protection that allows for trade with certain permits. Deep-sea species like gulper sharks are sought for their liver oil, which is used to make products such as moisturizers and antioxidants.
Also strengthened on Appendix II were wedgefish and giant guitarfish, both of which are often traded for their fins. These species were added to the “zero quota” category, which prohibits their export to allow their populations to recover.
“It really is just the start,” Mr. Warwick said. “It incentivizes stronger protection measures, maybe national protections, in countries around the world.”
The restrictions associated with the new listings will go into effect within three to 18 months, depending on the species. Implementation is one of the most challenging steps, said Rima Jabado, a shark specialist with the International Union for Conservation of Nature. “But we have the tools,” Dr. Jabado said. “We have the information, so we know what we need to do for implementation. We just need to make sure that countries know about it and are able to work on that.”
More shark species may be added at a future CITES conference, Dr. Jabado said, adding, “Because we’re not keeping up the pace with the exploitation, and that exploitation is driven by trade.”
Whales and turtles gained CITES protection four decades ago. Sharks and rays, long seen as little more than a fisheries commodity, were “something that took us a very long time to get to,” Dr. Jabado added.
Among other animals to win new protections on Friday was the elusive and endangered okapi, a giraffelike antelope with zebralike stripes that is endemic to the Democratic Republic of Congo. The okapi is now listed on Appendix I, which prohibits all international commercial trade in the animal or its parts.
Alexa Robles-Gil is a science reporter and a member of the 2025-26 Times Fellowship class, a program for journalists early in their careers.
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