Stingray, shark market photos raise conservation concerns in Sabah

KOTA KINABALU - The Sabah Fisheries Department has confirmed that viral pictures of a stingray and shark being sold at a market on the state's east coast are not endangered marine species.

Sabah Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industry Minister Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan said that preliminary research by the department on the photos identified the stingray as a bamboo shark and the shark as a devil ray.

He said that the bamboo shark is not endangered and that the devil ray is not from the species Mobula birostris or Mobula alfredi, which are listed as threatened under the Fisheries Act 1985.

"There are about 10 types of devil ray from the Mobula genus that are listed as endangered species under the International Trade in Endangered Species Act (Cites) 2008," he said.

He said that the state government through the Sabah Fisheries Department has never allowed the export trade of living sharks and stingrays, including those listed under Cites.

Kitingan said that his ministry takes seriously the issue of selling endangered marine life and that anyone found selling such animals could be fined not more than RM20,000 or imprisoned for not more than two years or both.

He added that in an operation on Tuesday at Semporna market by the Enforcement Unit of the Fisheries Department, it was confirmed that there was no sale of fish among any endangered species.

The viral pictures of the stingray and shark being sold at the market had sparked concerns that endangered marine life was being traded in Sabah.

Kitingan said that the department would continue to monitor the situation and take action against anyone found selling endangered marine life.