Spain: Several shark and ray species gain protection

Helmut Nickel, Shark Year Magazine,
25. January 2012

Spain protects 11 species of sharks and rays in the Mediterranean Sea.

On January 21, Spain’s Official State Bulletin (BOE) has announced the inclusion of eleven elasmobranch species to the ‘List of Wild Species under Special Protection’ (in Spanish: Listado de Especies Silvestres en Régimen de Protección Especial) . The measure concerns only the populations in the Mediterranean Sea.

This Spanish protection list already contains the great white shark, basking shark, giant devil ray and all species of hammerhead and thresher sharks since February 2011 (Royal Decree 139/2011).

Now the new order AAA/75/2012 adds the following species of sharks and rays to the ‘List of Wild Species under Special Protection’ :

Odontaspididae Family:
Sandtiger shark ( Carcharias taurus ).
Smalltooth sandtiger shark ( Odontaspis ferox ).

Rajidae Family:
Blue skate ( Dipturus batis ).
Bottlenose skate ( Rostroraja alba ).

Gymnuridae Family:
Spiny butterfly ray ( Gymnura altavela ).

Pristidae Family:
Smalltooth sawfish ( Pristis pectinata ).
Common Sawfish ( Pristis pristis ).

Oxynotidae Family:
Angular roughshark ( Oxynotus centrina ).

Squatinidae Family:
Sawback Angelsharks ( Squatina aculeata ).
Smoothback angelshark ( Squatina oculata ).
Angelshark ( Squatina squatina ).

Source: You can download a PDF of order AAA/75/2012 here.

 

 

2 Comments

  1. Uwe Preuss

    A question: in Portugal one finds in many restaurants a fish called “Tubarão espanhol” (Spanish shark) which I couldn’t identify. Please help me to find out which species that might be. Thanks,
    Uwe

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