Our team has found that demand for shark fins in East Asia has led to some Liberian canoes targeting sharks. EJF is documenting the damage & advocating for legal protection.

Canoes that target sharks use strong nets with large mesh sizes and set them over areas where sharks congregate. The sharks are then brought back to Monrovia and their fins are removed, dried and sold to traders from Conakry, Guinea who then ship them to East Asia. The bodies are smoked and sold for local consumption.

In this photo, our Biodiversity Officer Alphonso has documented a Smooth Hammerhead shark (listed by IUCN as Vulnerable) surrounded by at least six Blue sharks (listed as Near Threatened).

There are currently no domestic laws in Liberia preventing the targeting of sharks, even those that are endangered such as the Scalloped and Great Hammerheads. EJF is documenting the damage & advocating for legal protection.

EJF's biodiversity programme is partly funded by the EU.