Editing Shark (section)

===Shark culling===
{{main|Shark culling}}

In 2014, a [[Western Australian shark cull|shark cull in Western Australia]] killed dozens of sharks (mostly [[tiger sharks]]) using [[drum line (shark control)|drum lines]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/08/world/asia/australia-shark-cull/index.html|title=Australia: Over 170 sharks caught under controversial cull program |publisher=CNN |first=Sophie |last=Brown|date=8 May 2014 |access-date=31 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170101001449/http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/08/world/asia/australia-shark-cull/index.html|archive-date=1 January 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> until it was cancelled after public protests and a decision by the Western Australia EPA; from 2014 to 2017, there was an "imminent threat" policy in Western Australia in which sharks that "threatened" humans in the ocean were shot and killed.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/oct/24/wa-abandons-shark-culling-program-but-reserves-right-to-kill-again|title=WA abandons shark culling program, but reserves right to kill again|first=Oliver|last=Milman|date=23 October 2014|access-date=31 December 2016|newspaper=The Guardian|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161126065452/https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/oct/24/wa-abandons-shark-culling-program-but-reserves-right-to-kill-again|archive-date=26 November 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> This "imminent threat" policy was criticized by senator Rachel Siewart for killing endangered sharks.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2015/feb/12/was-serious-threat-shark-policy-condemned-by-senate|title=Western Australia's 'serious threat' shark policy condemned by Senate|first=Calla|last=Wahlquist|date=12 February 2015|access-date=31 December 2016|newspaper=The Guardian|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161126194934/https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2015/feb/12/was-serious-threat-shark-policy-condemned-by-senate|archive-date=26 November 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> The "imminent threat" policy was cancelled in March 2017.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://thewest.com.au/news/sharks/premier-mark-mcgowans-shark-plan-not-enough-to-protect-us-ng-b88448984z |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180909155357/https://thewest.com.au/news/sharks/premier-mark-mcgowans-shark-plan-not-enough-to-protect-us-ng-b88448984z |archive-date=2018-09-09 |title=Premier Mark McGowan's shark plan not enough to protect us |last=Mercer |first=Daniel |work=The West Australian |date=19 April 2017 |access-date=2 September 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> In August 2018, the Western Australia government announced a plan to re-introduce drum lines (though, this time the drum lines are "SMART" drum lines).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-08-14/shark-attacks-prompt-wa-to-conduct-smart-drum-line-trial/10117230 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180902052538/http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-08-14/shark-attacks-prompt-wa-to-conduct-smart-drum-line-trial/10117230 |archive-date=2018-09-02 |work=ABC News (Australia) |title=Sharks to be caught on SMART drum lines off WA's South West after Labor U-turn |date=August 14, 2018 |access-date=September 2, 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>

From 1962 to the present,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.seashepherd.org.au/apex-harmony/overview/queensland.html|title=Queensland - Overview|website=seashepherd.org.au|access-date=31 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170823115901/http://www.seashepherd.org.au/apex-harmony/overview/queensland.html|archive-date=23 August 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> the government of [[Queensland]] has targeted and killed sharks in large numbers by using [[drum line (shark control)|drum lines]], under a "shark control" program—this program has also inadvertently killed large numbers of other animals such as [[dolphin]]s; it has also killed endangered [[hammerhead shark]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/state-politics/drumlines-capture-hundreds-of-sharks-in-queensland/news-story/0819c245bd85f1fc120a3cbf886f4647|title=Drumlines nab 695 sharks |work=The Australian|access-date=31 December 2016 |url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-08-25/shark-control-program-dolphins-killed-shark-nets-drum-lines/6719682|title=Dolphins, rays among hundreds killed on Queensland shark nets and drum lines, figures show |last=Watson |first=Matt |work=ABC News (Australia)|date=25 August 2015|access-date=31 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170512105405/http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-08-25/shark-control-program-dolphins-killed-shark-nets-drum-lines/6719682|archive-date=12 May 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="sealifetrust"/><ref name="ntd"/> Queensland's drum line program has been called "outdated, cruel and ineffective".<ref name="ntd">{{cite web |url=https://www.ntd.tv/2018/09/04/video-endangered-hammerhead-sharks-dead-on-drum-line-in-great-barrier-reef/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180919094449/https://www.ntd.tv/2018/09/04/video-endangered-hammerhead-sharks-dead-on-drum-line-in-great-barrier-reef/ |archive-date=2018-09-19 |title=Endangered Hammerhead Sharks Dead on Drum Line in Great Barrier Reef |first=Jack |last=Phillips |work=Ntd.tv |access-date=September 18, 2018}}</ref> From 2001 to 2018, a total of 10,480 sharks were killed on lethal drum lines in Queensland, including in the [[Great Barrier Reef]].<ref>{{cite web |date=September 4, 2018 |title=Queensland Government Kills Sharks, Faces Court Challenge |url=https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/queensland-government-kills-sharks-faces-court-challenge |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180904151759/https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/queensland-government-kills-sharks-faces-court-challenge |archive-date=2018-09-04 |access-date=October 25, 2018 |work=maritime-executive.com}}</ref> From 1962 to 2018, roughly 50,000 sharks were killed by Queensland authorities.<ref name="Decline">{{cite web |url=https://www.news.com.au/technology/science/animals/aussie-shark-population-is-staggering-decline/news-story/49e910c828b6e2b735d1c68e6b2c956e |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181223022115/https://www.news.com.au/technology/science/animals/aussie-shark-population-is-staggering-decline/news-story/49e910c828b6e2b735d1c68e6b2c956e |archive-date=2018-12-23 |website=News.com.au |title=Aussie shark population in staggering decline |first=Rhian |last=Deutrom |date=December 14, 2018 |access-date=December 22, 2018}}</ref>

The government of [[New South Wales]] has a program that deliberately kills sharks using [[shark net|nets]].<ref name="sealifetrust">{{cite web |url=http://www.sealifetrust.org.au/news/latest/shark-nets-australia-work |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180919132255/http://www.sealifetrust.org.au/news/latest/shark-nets-australia-work |archive-date=2018-09-19 |title=Shark nets in Australia—what are they and how do they work? |website=Sealifetrust.org.au |access-date=September 18, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.seashepherd.org.au/apex-harmony/overview/new-south-wales.html|title=New South Wales - Overview|website=seashepherd.org.au|access-date=31 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161127215030/http://www.seashepherd.org.au/apex-harmony/overview/new-south-wales.html|archive-date=27 November 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> The current net program in New South Wales has been described as being "extremely destructive" to marine life, including sharks.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/elfyscott/heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-australias-smart-drum |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181013133053/https://www.buzzfeed.com/elfyscott/heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-australias-smart-drum |archive-date=2018-10-13 |title=Here's What You Need To Know About Australia's SMART Drum Lines Being Used To Prevent Shark Attacks |first=Elfy |last=Scott |work=Buzzfeed |date=July 5, 2018 |access-date=September 2, 2018}}</ref> Between 1950 and 2008, 352 [[tiger shark]]s and 577 [[great white shark]]s were killed in the nets in New South Wales—also during this period, a total of 15,135 marine animals were killed in the nets, including dolphins, whales, turtles, dugongs, and critically endangered [[grey nurse shark]]s.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.marineconservation.org.au/pages/shark-culling.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002102324/https://www.marineconservation.org.au/pages/shark-culling.html |archive-date=2018-10-02 |title=Shark Culling |publisher=Australian Marine Convservation Society |access-date=October 25, 2018}}</ref> There has been a very large decrease in the number of sharks in eastern Australia, and the shark-killing programs in Queensland and New South Wales are partly responsible for this decrease.<ref name="Decline"/>

[[Kwazulu-Natal]], an area of [[South Africa]], has a shark-killing program using nets and drum lines—these nets and drum lines have killed turtles and dolphins, and have been criticized for killing wildlife.<ref name="sharkangels">{{cite web |url=http://www.sharkangels.org/index.php/media/news/157-shark-nets |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180919132309/http://www.sharkangels.org/index.php/media/news/157-shark-nets |archive-date=2018-09-19 |website=Sharkangels.org |title=Shark nets |access-date=September 18, 2018}}</ref> During a 30-year period, more than 33,000 sharks have been killed in KwaZulu-Natal's shark-killing program—during the same 30-year period, 2,211 turtles, 8,448 rays, and 2,310 dolphins were killed in KwaZulu-Natal.<ref name="sharkangels"/> Authorities on the French island of [[Réunion]] kill about 100 sharks per year.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11847758 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002102328/https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11847758 |archive-date=2018-10-02 |title=Man Who Devoted Life To Sharks, Killed Off The Coast Of Reunion |website=[[The New Zealand Herald]] |date=April 30, 2017 |access-date=October 25, 2018}}</ref>

Killing sharks negatively affects the marine ecosystem.<ref name="pursuit">{{cite web |url=http://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/sharks-how-a-cull-could-ruin-an-ecosystem |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002033521/https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/sharks-how-a-cull-could-ruin-an-ecosystem |archive-date=2018-10-02 |title=Sharks: How A Cull Could Ruin An Ecosystem |first=Alana |last=Schetzer |date=8 May 2017 |publisher=University of Melbourne |access-date=September 19, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/no-shark-cull-why-some-surfers-don-t-want-kill-n748141 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180806024920/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/no-shark-cull-why-some-surfers-don-t-want-kill-n748141 |archive-date=2018-08-06 | work=NBC News |title=No Shark Cull: Why Some Surfers Don't Want to Kill Great Whites Despite Lethal Attacks |first=Chloe |last=Hubbard |date=April 30, 2017 |access-date=September 19, 2018}}</ref> Jessica Morris of [[Humane Society International]] calls shark culling a "knee-jerk reaction" and says, "sharks are top order predators that play an important role in the functioning of marine ecosystems. We need them for healthy oceans."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://hsi.org.au/blog/2016/12/08/shark-nets-death-traps-for-marine-animals/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002103912/https://hsi.org.au/blog/2016/12/08/shark-nets-death-traps-for-marine-animals/ |archive-date=2018-10-02 |last=Morris |first=Jessica |date=December 8, 2016 |title=Shark Nets—Death Traps For Marine Animals |publisher=hsi.org.au |access-date=October 25, 2018}}</ref>

[[George H. Burgess]], the former<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.southcoasttoday.com/news/20181008/expert-shark-threat-always-going-to-be-problem-for-cape-cod |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181020100508/http://www.southcoasttoday.com/news/20181008/expert-shark-threat-always-going-to-be-problem-for-cape-cod |archive-date=2018-10-20 |title=Expert: Shark threat 'always going to be a problem' for Cape Cod |first=Doug |last=Fraser |date=October 8, 2018 |work=Cape Cod Times |access-date=October 25, 2018 }}</ref> director of the [[International Shark Attack File]], "describes [shark] culling as a form of revenge, satisfying a public demand for blood and little else";<ref name="thestar">{{cite web |url=https://www.thestar.com/news/stardispatches/2014/06/16/how_to_swim_with_sharks_and_not_get_eaten.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180919094403/https://www.thestar.com/news/stardispatches/2014/06/16/how_to_swim_with_sharks_and_not_get_eaten.html |archive-date=2018-09-19 |title=How To Swim With Sharks And Not Get Eaten |first=Sandro |last=Contenta |work=Toronto Star |date=June 16, 2014 |access-date=September 19, 2018}}</ref> he also said shark culling is a "retro-type move reminiscent of what people would have done in the 1940s and 50s, back when we didn't have an ecological conscience and before we knew the consequences of our actions."<ref name="thestar"/> Jane Williamson, an associate professor in marine ecology at Macquarie University, says "There is no scientific support for the concept that culling sharks in a particular area will lead to a decrease in shark attacks and increase ocean safety."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://theconversation.com/mike-baird-is-right-culling-sharks-doesnt-work-heres-what-we-can-do-instead-46195 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190117083701/http://theconversation.com/mike-baird-is-right-culling-sharks-doesnt-work-heres-what-we-can-do-instead-46195 |archive-date=2019-01-17 |website=Theconversation.com |title=Mike Baird is right, culling sharks doesn't work—here's what we can do instead |first=Jane |last=Williamson |date=August 17, 2015 |access-date=December 22, 2018}}</ref>