In the southern Red Sea, an Oceanic Whitetip Shark (Carcharhinus longimanus) stares into the lens, a painful testament to human impact: a large fishing hook is visibly embedded in its mouth. It approached me with curiosity and intent, as if to show the fishing hook. It passed directly overhead, within less than a meter. The image was processed in Lightroom to enhance exposure and converted to black and white to be more impactful.

This image highlights the primary threat facing this majestic pelagic predator: accidental capture (bycatch) in commercial longline and purse-seine fisheries targeting tuna and other fish. Once one of the most abundant sharks in tropical oceans, the species has suffered catastrophic population declines of over 98% globally and is now classified as Critically Endangered by the IUCN. The presence of this hook underscores an ongoing conservation crisis, as these slow-growing, late-maturing sharks cannot withstand high fishing mortality rates, despite international bans on retention and trade mandated by CITES Appendix II listings.