Wing Beach in Saipan, the Northern Marianas. Photo: RNZI / Mark Rabago
Fishers in the Northern Mariana Islands have raised concern about sharks disrupting fishing operations, destroying gear, and undermining already strained livelihoods.
A regional observations forum was held online in late January.
"As soon as we hooked up, the shark would automatically get our fish," said Audrey Toves, an advisory panel member and charter captain from Guam. "We didn't even hit the bottom yet."
Toves said shark interactions were so severe in some areas that survey work could not be completed.
"Some areas, some islands, we just didn't even complete our grids because the shark depredation was high," she said. "We were losing a lot of gear."
She said crews lost "maybe an average of like 10 rigs," making continued fishing financially unsustainable.
She said sharks are no longer just targeting hooked fish.
"They went from hitting the fish that's hooked up to hitting the lures," she said. "They're hitting surface, midwater column, right below the surface."
The forum, hosted by the Pacific Islands Fisheries Group in coordination with the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council, brought together fishermen, scientists, and agency representatives from Guam and the Commonwealth to document firsthand observations from the 2025 fishing year. The effort aims to capture traditional and empirical knowledge to supplement official data used in fisheries management.
Clay Tam of the Pacific Islands Fisheries Group said the site depredation rate for sharks is 80 per cent.
Pete Itibus, a Saipan-based fisherman, said sharks are not only taking fish but entire rigs.
"They don't only eat the fish. They even take away your sinker," he said.
Itibus said sharks appear to follow boats when fishermen try to relocate.
"If they're active, the minute you start the engine and move, they'll be there," he said. "It would take less than five minutes for them to reach you."
'Very smart'
Richard Farrell, who fishes out of Tinian, said the losses are affecting food supply and community events.
"One guy could hit a 20- or 30-lb yellowfin, but he only got half of it," he said.
Jason Miller, a Guam advisory panel member, said sharks appear to respond to boat noise.
"They're listening," Miller said. "As soon as I pull up to the buoy, the sharks come right up from the deep."
Guam fisherman Dominic Saniel, an advisory panel member, said some fishermen have experimented with shutting down engines to reduce shark encounters.
"We shut off the engine, and we hardly got shark," he said. "The boat 50 to 100 yards away with the engine on was getting shark left and right.
"They are very, very smart."
Beyond shark depredation, speakers said rising costs and declining fish prices are compounding the problem.
Andrew Kang, a fisheries biologist with the Guam Department of Agriculture, said many fishermen are returning from long days at sea with little to show for it.
"They spend all day, and the coolers have nothing to show for it," he said.
The observations collected during the forum will be compiled into a report for inclusion in the annual Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation report, providing long-term documentation of conditions affecting Marianas fisheries.
