From the park to the smoke

Demand for shark fin has always been thought as one of the drivers leading to massive extraction of rhinoray species (wedgefish and guitarfish) in Indonesia, including from Karimunjawa National Park (KJNP), Central Java. Despite many of the fisheries, both commercial and artisanal, are not targeting the rhinorays, expectation of catching them are circulating from fishers to fishers due to their high fin value. However, just as with other locations in Indonesia, various body parts of the shark are fully utilised, including the meat, skin, liver, and innards. Shark-like rays, such as rhinorays, received the same treatment.

This leads to the following questions: where are they being taken to, and who is buying them?

Rhinorays dried skin in Jepara Region. Photo © Faqih Akbar Alghozali | Elasmobranch Project Indonesia

In a one-year period (August 2023-August 2024), there were over 1,700 bottlenose wedgefish (Rhynchobatus australiae) caught from KJNP and surrounding waters. More than 94% of this number was produced by fishers from Demaan Village in Jepara Region, Central Java, in comparison by those in KJNP. This number simply exceeded the catch quota and size limit recommendation set by the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries in 2024 for the whole Central Java Province. All of these bottlenose wedgefish, along with other rhinoray species, got the same process of trade and utilisation.

The smoking process of rhinorays in Jepara Region. Photo © Faqih Akbar Alghozali | Elasmobranch Project Indonesia

Each rhinoray went through a relatively straight forward process: from the waters, to local fishers, and eventually to fish processors. As local fishes did not consume them, many of the rhinorays were sent straight to the local fish buyers. They were then finned by the local fish buyers, who double as fin collectors for main exporters in big cities, such as Jakarta and Surabaya, before the whole finless carcasses were bought by local fish processors. These fish processors would then skin each carcass, gut them, and chop the meat and bones into two-fingers-sized or palm-sized pieces. The meat and bones were smoked, the innards, eggs, and embryos were smoke-steamed, while the skins were dried. While only the shark skins were sent back to the local fish buyers, the other processed products were sold to the locals, peddlers, and markets in other regions in Central Java Province, such as Pati.

Processed rhinoray products in Jepara Region – meat (far left), bones (mid-left), innards (mid-right), and eggs and embryo (far right). Photos © Elasmobranch Project Indonesia

The assumption as of now, while it still needs further research and verification, is that local demand for rhinoray products may relatively contribute to the catch and retention rate of rhinorays caught by local fishers. Subsequently, this leads to the concern that even if their export for fins is better regulated in the future, the production rate may remain the same due to local demands. Although present top-down regulation exists, the difficulty in enforcing it in remote areas may indicate the need to work collaboratively with local communities and authorities to provide the bottom-up support for rhinoray conservation in KJNP waters. Ultimately, more research and local community engagement will be key in the future to realise the dream of better managing the rhinorays in KJNP waters.