The importance of sharks

When you hear the word shark you most likely think of the movie Jaws or an image similar to the one above.

 In all actuality you have more of a chance of being attacked by a chance then being killed by a vending machine.

Sharks have been on our planet 450 million years, 150 million years before the dinosaurs. Every species on the planet come from a common ancestor. Sharks have shaped our ecosystem more than I can express in words. Humans on the other hand have been here thirty thousand years and have hurt the planet and we have only been on this planet thirty thousand years. Sharks are in danger of becoming extinct because of something known as shark finning. Its a process in which sharks are caught  over one hundred million shraks are killed on average a year. One reason sharks are so important to our planet is that they provide us with a majority of the world's oxygen by protecting a species called Phytoplankton. You would think the majority of oxygen comes from the rain forest but in reality all trees on the entire planet provide just fifteen percent.Phytoplankton produce over fifty percent. Sharks protect the phytoplankton by keeping their predator level lower. When sharks go extinct the aquatic ecosystem would change drastically. The reason most sharks are killed is because of finning, which is where fishermen will use long lines up to 80 miles long and catch thousands of aquatic animals. When they fin a shark they cut off the fin and throw the body into the ocean to bleed to death. This subject is very important to me and I wanted to spread the knowledge with all of you. I hope one of you will read this and try to get involved.

A very good documentary on the subject if you have time watch it!