Taiwan Church News
3463 Edition
9 – 15 July, 2018
Environmental News
Cub Shark Of Endangered Sphyrna Lewini Found In Tai Tam Reef
Reported by Chiu Kuo-rong
A cub shark of sphyrna lewini, an endangered species listed in IUCN(International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List of threatened species, is recently found in Tai Tam Reef, located offshore at Taoyuan county’s coast.
On July 2, scholars from Academia Sinica and studying teams from the disciplines of life sciences and social sciences of Taiwan universities urged the national enterprises like CPC immediately stop their harbor construction or move the third natural gas station project northbound to Taipei harbor.
Dr Chen Chao-lun, research fellow of Biodiversity Research Center of Academia Sinica, points out that Taiwan’s west coast reefs and Taiwan Strait are very important habitats for diverse marine creatures. The discovery of cub shark of sphyrna lewini at Tai Tam Reef indicates a marine ecological system is functioning well offshore around Northern Taiwan, and government should put more resources and efforts to preserve such hard-won marine diversity and coastal reef environment, Dr Chen says.
Translated by Peter Wolfe
