Stock Assessment of Marine Elasmobranchs (Sharks and Rays) in the Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh

The Bay of Bengal (BoB) is a global hub for marine elasmobranchs, particularly sharks and rays. These apex predators maintain and structure the balanced marine ecosystem and food webs. Marine elasmobranchs in Bangladesh are under-researched and under-managed, and face threats such as habitat degradation, global warming, pollution, illegal fishing, and overexploitation. This study aimed to evaluate the stock status of marine elasmobranches in the Bay of Bengal (BoB), Bangladesh. This research used catch and effort (CE) data for a period of 21 years (2002–2022). Both the Monte Carlo CMSY and BSM models were applied to assess biomass, exploitation rates, and sustainable yields. The BSM estimated a maximum carrying capacity (<i>k</i>) of 134,000 mt, which is larger than the CMSY estimate of 119,000 mt. The estimated intrinsic annual growth (<i>r</i>) from CMSY was 0.282. The MSY values ranged from 5110 mt (BSM) to 8420 mt (CMSY), with BSM indicating overexploitation, as the 2022 catch (7017 mt) exceeded the BSM-derived MSY. Both models suggested depleted and overfishing stock conditions, with <i>B</i>/<i>B_MSY</i> ratios < 1.0 and <i>F</i>/<i>F_MSY</i> ratios > 1.0. Effective management is crucial to prevent overfishing and ensure sustainable practices. Elasmobranch catches must be kept below the BSM-estimated maximum sustainable yield (MSY) of 5110 metric tons with fishing pressure maintained at or below <i>F</i>/<i>F_MSY</i> = 1.0. It is vital to regulate illegal and unlicensed fishing activities. Because of the aggregation of CE data, the results should be interpreted cautiously and never serve as a substitute for species-level assessments.