‘No-take’ marine reserves – where fishing is banned – can reverse the decline in the world’s coral reef shark populations caused by overfishing, according to an Australian study.
But University of Queensland, James Cook University (JCU) and University of Tasmania researchers found that existing marine reserves need to be much larger to be effective against overfishing.
UQ’s Dr Ross Dwyer said the study estimated that no-take reserves that extend between 10 and 50 kilometres along coral reefs can achieve significant improvements in shark populations.
