Greenland Fishermen Seek $45 Bounty Cull of 1,000 Ancient Sharks

Greenland fishermen have called for removing 1,000 Greenland sharks, a species that can live more than 400 years and is among the longest-living vertebrates. In February, Avannaata municipality on Greenland’s west coast approved a mass-culling proposal after local fishers said the slow-moving, 20-foot sharks were repeatedly getting tangled in fishing lines, damaging gear and costing tens of thousands of dollars. One fisherman, Henrik Jensen, said he has lost about 6,000 hooks and sometimes 30,000 Danish krone a day. A $45 bounty plan to pay for each shark heart was later blocked after opponents warned of long-term harm to a vulnerable species.