Why is shark conservation so critical? Sharks, a group of top predators, need a great deal of man- agement and conservation attention because they’re extremely vulnerable to being overfished, more so than many other animals. Sharks have a slow reproductive rate, are late to mature, breed infre- quently and many species produce litters only every two to three years. Although they produce several offspring per litter, the natural mortality rate on small sharks is usually quite high. Add to this the overfishing spurred by the value of fins, and sharks have been exploited far beyond their ability to recover. As a result, populations have declined worldwide. >