Recovery Plan for the Grey Nurse Shark (Carcharias Taurus)

Recovery Plan for the Grey Nurse Shark (Carcharias taurus) 2014 The issues paper linked to this recovery plan is obtainable from: www.environment.gov.au/resource/recovery-plan-grey-nurse-shark-carcharias-taurus © Commonwealth of Australia 2014 This work is copyright. You may download, display, print and reproduce this material in unaltered form only (retaining this notice) for your personal, non-commercial use or use within your organisation. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, all other rights are reserved. Requests and enquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to Department of the Environment, Public Affairs, GPO Box 787 Canberra ACT 2601 or email [email protected]. Disclaimer While reasonable efforts have been made to ensure that the contents of this publication are factually correct, the Commonwealth does not accept responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of the contents, and shall not be liable for any loss or damage that may be occasioned directly or indirectly through the use of, or reliance on, the contents of this publication. Cover images by Justin Gilligan Photography Contents List of tables ii Abbreviations ii 1 Summary 1 2 Background 2 3 Conservation status 5 4 Reasons for listing under the EPBC Act 6 5 Evaluation of performance of the previous Recovery Plan for the Grey Nurse Shark 7 6 Threats 9 7 Populations that require protective measures 10 8 Objectives 11 9 Actions to achieve the specific objectives 12 10 Current management practices 22 11 Effects on other native species or ecological communities 25 12 Biodiversity benefits 26 13 Social and economic considerations 27 14 Duration and cost of the recovery process 28 15 Affected interests 29 16 Efficient and effective use of resources 30 17 Consultation 31 18 Organisations/persons involved in evaluating the performance of the plan 32 19 References 33 20 Appendices 35 i List of tables Table 1. Known key aggregation sites critical to the survival of the grey nurse shark in Australian waters 4 Table 2: Summary of the status of the actions identified in the 2002 Recovery Plan for the Grey Nurse Shark (Carcharias taurus) in Australia (EA, 2002) 35 Table 3: Organisations represented on the then National Shark Recovery Group (NSRG) 43 Abbreviations AFMA Australian Fisheries Management Authority, Commonwealth BIA Biologically Important Area CITES Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora CSIRO Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation DoA Department of Agriculture, Commonwealth DoE Department of the Environment, Commonwealth EPBC Act Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 HSI Humane Society International IUCN International Union for Conservation of Nature MNES Matters of national environmental significance NSRG National Shark Recovery Group NSW DPI New South Wales Department of Primary Industries SPRAT Species Profile and Threats Database TRAFFIC Trade Records Analysis of Flora and Fauna in Commerce TSSC Threatened Species Scientific Committee ii / Recovery Plan for the Grey Nurse Shark (Carcharias taurus) 1 Summary This document constitutes the Australian The principal threats and likely contributors to the National Recovery Plan for the Grey Nurse Shark lack of grey nurse shark recovery in Australia are (Carcharias taurus). mortality resulting from incidental (accidental and/or illegal) capture by commercial and recreational fishers The plan considers the conservation requirements of and from shark control activities. Other potential the species across its range, identifies the actions to be threats to the species include impacts from taken to ensure the species’ long-term viability in ecotourism, collection for public aquaria, pollution nature and indicates the parties that will undertake and disease and ecosystem effects as a result of habitat those actions. This plan replaces the 2002 Recovery modification and climate change. Plan for the Grey Nurse Shark (Carcharias taurus) in Australia and should be read in conjunction with the This recovery plan sets out the research and Issues Paper for the Grey Nurse Shark. management actions necessary to stop the decline of, and support the recovery of, the grey nurse shark in A review of the 2002 Recovery Plan for the Grey Australian waters. Nurse Shark (Carcharias taurus) in Australia was finalised in January 2009. The review noted that The overarching objective of this recovery plan is to since 2002, all but one of the 19 key aggregation sites assist the recovery of the grey nurse shark in the wild, listed as ‘habitat critical to the survival of the species’ throughout its range in Australian waters, with a in the recovery plan had been given some level of view to: protection. The review found it was not possible to • improving the population status, leading to future determine if the east coast population had shown any removal of the grey nurse shark from the sign of recovery since the implementation of the plan threatened species list of the EPBC Act and identified an ongoing need to maintain a recovery plan for the species. The review also found no reason • ensuring that anthropogenic activities do not to alter the status of the east coast population from hinder the recovery of the grey nurse shark in the critically endangered, or the west coast population near future, or impact on the long term from vulnerable, under the Environment Protection conservation status of the species. and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act). An accompanying issues paper has also been developed The review concluded that a new recovery plan should to provide background information on the biology, be developed to remove the completed actions and population status and threats to the grey nurse shark. include new conservation priorities. Both the issues paper and the recovery plan can be In addition to the grey nurse shark listing under found at: www.environment.gov.au/resource/recovery- Commonwealth legislation, the species is protected in plan-grey-nurse-shark-carcharias-taurus the coastal waters of Tasmania, South Australia, Victoria and Western Australia, and protected in the coastal waters of New South Wales and Queensland with exemptions or a defence to prosecution for shark control programs for bather protection (e.g. beach meshing and/or drumlining). 1 2 Background 2.1 Species description and life span of the grey nurse shark in the wild is unknown, studies in captivity in South Africa indicate distribution in Australian they may live up to 35 years (Smith et al., 1998). waters In Australia, the grey nurse shark has an inshore The grey nurse shark Carcharias( taurus) is one of three coastal distribution primarily in sub-tropical to cool species belonging to the family Odontaspididae. It is temperate waters on the continental shelf. There are known as the sand tiger shark in the United States of two separate, genetically distinct grey nurse shark America, and the spotted ragged-tooth shark in South populations in Australian waters—one on the east Africa. The grey nurse shark is reported to have coast and one on the west coast (Stow et al., 2006). separate and distinct populations and is found mostly Grey nurse sharks have been caught only rarely in the in inshore regions in cool temperate to sub-tropical Arafura Sea and have not been identified in Tasmanian waters (Compagno, 1984; Last & Stevens, 2009). waters (Read & Ward, 1986; Last & Stevens, 2009). Significant declines have occurred throughout its The east coast population covers a range of range, resulting in grey nurse shark populations now approximately 2700 km and extends from the being restricted to the east coasts of North and South Capricornia coast (central Queensland) to Narooma America, South Africa and the east and west coasts of in southern New South Wales (Otway et al., 2003; Australia (Musick et al., 1993; Lucifora et al., 2002; Bansemer, 2009; Otway et al., 2009). Sightings data Otway et al., 2004). from the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries (NSW DPI) includes sightings as far south The grey nurse shark is considered to have slow as the NSW/Victoria border (NSW DPI, 2002). growth, be long-lived, present late onset sexual The range of the west coast population is less well maturity and have low fecundity. While the average known, however records indicate that the species is Photo by Justin Gilligan 2 / Recovery Plan for the Grey Nurse Shark (Carcharias taurus) widely distributed from the North West Shelf this fishery (up to 1997) indicates that the grey nurse (including coastal waters in Exmouth Gulf), shark was relatively abundant in temperate south to coastal waters near Cocklebiddy in the Western Australian waters in the mid to late 1990s Great Australian Bight (McAuley et al., 2002; (Cavanagh et al., 2003). However, after listing Cavanagh et al., 2003), covering a range of of the species in 1997, catch-rate reporting on this approximately 2900 km. species effectively stopped, making more recent assessments of population size and trends difficult (Chidlow et al., 2006). 2.2 Population trends Prior to 1998, limited data describing the spatial and 2.3 Aggregation sites – habitat temporal patterns of abundance of the grey nurse shark along the east coast of Australia were available critical to the survival of the (Pepperell, 1992; Reid & Krogh, 1992; Krogh, 1994; grey nurse shark Dudley, 1997). In the 1960s, the grey nurse shark was anecdotally known to aggregate at approximately Grey nurse

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