Recovery Action
Under the ESA, NOAA Fisheries must develop and implement recovery plans for the conservation and survival of listed species. The ultimate goal of the plan is to recover the species to the point at which it no longer requires the protections of the ESA and can be delisted.
We developed the Oceanic Whitetip Shark Recovery Plan based on available data and scientific literature, as well as input provided at two recovery planning workshops for the oceanic whitetip shark—one on April 23-24, 2019 in Honolulu, Hawaiߵi, and another on November 13 and 14, 2019 in Miami, Florida. The purpose of these workshops was to gather information, facts, and perspectives on how to recover the oceanic whitetip shark, including identifying potential recovery criteria and actions to address the threats to the oceanic whitetip shark. Participants included federal and state agencies, scientific experts, commercial fishermen, conservation partners, and non-governmental organizations.
We adopted the final Oceanic Whitetip Shark Recovery Plan in July 2024. The plan recommends the following major actions:
- Improve knowledge and understanding of oceanic whitetip shark population status, abundance trends, and genetic structure.
- Improve knowledge and understanding of oceanic whitetip shark distribution, movement, and habitat use.
- Improve knowledge and understanding of the demographics and life history of oceanic whitetip sharks.
- Minimize fisheries bycatch and mortality of oceanic whitetip sharks by determining and addressing the frequency of capture and severity of fishing interactions in commercial, artisanal, and recreational fisheries.
- Minimize fisheries bycatch and mortality of oceanic whitetip sharks in international fisheries and trade through enhanced international coordination and collaboration with relevant international organizations, such as RFMOs.
- Determine the effects of the international shark fin trade on oceanic whitetip shark populations in all management units, and take management actions to minimize, and/or eliminate if necessary, the amount of oceanic whitetip shark fins in trade.
- Improve species-specific monitoring and reporting of oceanic whitetip sharks in commercial and artisanal fisheries by RFMOs and individual countries to provide a better understanding of the effects of illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, improve estimates of catch and discards, and measure progress towards recovery.
- Minimize fishing mortality of oceanic whitetip sharks through effective development, implementation, and enforcement of international and domestic measures, such as legislation and regulations.
- Develop and implement outreach and education strategies and programs to increase public and stakeholder (including fishermen) awareness on the status and recovery needs of the oceanic whitetip shark.
Learn more about the Oceanic Whitetip Shark Recovery Plan
Learn more about oceanic whitetip shark biology, ecology, status, and threats
Implementation
The Recovery Implementation Strategy is a flexible, operational document that steps-down the recovery actions in the recovery plan into more specifically defined activities that implement and support the recovery actions. The Recovery Implementation Strategy is intended to assist NOAA Fisheries and other stakeholders in planning and implementing activities to carry out the recovery actions in the recovery plan. The activities identified in the Recovery Implementation Strategy can be modified and adapted over time based on the progress of recovery and the availability of resources or new data or literature.
Learn more about the Oceanic Whitetip Shark Recovery Implementation Strategy >
Recovery Contacts
Kristen Koyama, Oceanic Whitetip Shark Recovery Coordinator
For more information on oceanic whitetip sharks in our regions:
Adam Brame, Southeast Region
Chelsey Young, Pacific Islands Region
Retention Prohibition in Atlantic Waters
Commercial and recreational retention of oceanic whitetip sharks is prohibited in all U.S. federal waters of the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), and Caribbean Sea. Fishermen must release an oceanic whitetip shark immediately, without removing it from the water and in a manner that maximizes its chances of survival.
Learn more about Atlantic Highly Migratory Species
Find safe release guidelines
Research and Collaborative Conservation Projects
NOAA Fisheries is currently working with a number of external partners on collaborative conservation projects in multiple areas. Experiments on ways to reduce bycatch mortality and assess post release mortality rates for oceanic whitetip sharks caught in longline fisheries are being conducted in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Quantification of the percentage of fin trimmings that consist of oceanic whitetips and their incidence in shark fin markets is being conducted with the ultimate goal of assigning fin samples to ocean basin of origin, allowing for a better understanding where IUU fishing of this species is occurring.
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora
At the 2013 meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), the Parties agreed to include oceanic whitetip sharks in Appendix II of CITES, with the listing effective on September 14, 2014. The inclusion of oceanic whitetip sharks in CITES Appendix II helps ensure that the international trade for this species is legal and sustainable.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the government agency designated under the Endangered Species Act to carry out the provisions of CITES. NOAA Fisheries provides guidance and scientific support on marine issues given our technical expertise.
