The Balearic Sea Report recommends that the gulper shark be included in the red book of endangered species of the Balearic Islands
Published 17.03.2025
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Catches of this shark have fallen by 77% in 12 years
The Balearic (IMB) includes a study carried out by elasmobranch (sharks and rays) experts Biel Morey, Olga Reñones, and Francesc Verger. The study is based on data collected at the Palma fish market on shark and shark-like catches between 2009 and 2021.
There are currently 59 species of sharks and rays recorded in Balearic waters, of which 30 are threatened and 6 are already considered locally extinct. With the new data on the gulper shark collected during the study, the number of threatened elasmobranch species would rise to 31.
Monitoring data on sharks and rays unloaded at the Palma fish market shows that three species of shark are in a very vulnerable state of conservation: the small-spotted catshark (Mustelus mustelus), the greater spotted dogfish (Scyliorhinus stellaris), and the gulper shark (Centrophorus uyato). While the spotted catshark and the greater spotted dogfish are already classified as endangered species in the Balearic Islands, the gulper shark has not yet been considered threatened.
Gulper shark catches have been reduced by 77% in 12 years. In the absence of other population data, this trend suggests that this species is in danger of extinction in Mallorca. Urgent measures are needed to assess its population in Balearic waters to ensure its conservation.
The spotted catshark has also been revealed as a species in a very vulnerable state, since the majority of specimens captured are immature and, therefore, fished before they can reproduce to perpetuate the species.
The third shark studied that is also threatened is the gulper shark, which has declined by 37% in 8 years.
The decline of these three species indicates that urgent measures are needed to study their populations and their state of exploitation to define appropriate management plans for their recovery. In the case of the spiny butterfly ray, it is recommended that its status in the Red Book of Fish of the Balearic Islands be changed and that it be considered endangered.
