Talk:Shark liver oil

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"According to the National Geographic Society, overfishing of sharks has caused a significant drop in shark populations that poses dangers to ocean ecosystems worldwide"

Is this really relevant to what shark liver oil is? Should this line be included in this page?

It depends on whether a significant number of sharks are hunted predominantly for their livers. If shark liver oil is considered a byproduct of other shark products it is not relevant. This could be determined by comparing the economic value of shark oil/fins/meat/etc.4hodmt 14:19, 15 September 2006 (UTC)

So is it Wikipedia's status to simply throw up unsubstantiated claims? I would think that until that link is established, it should stay off the article. Is my thinking unsound here?

[edit] Sustainability of supplement

I'm looking into taking shark liver oil as a supplement, but I don't want to support an industry that has a negative impact on global shark populations. I would like to see some discussion in this article about the sustainability of this supplement and if it does in fact impact the environment negatively.--64.81.241.188 19:11, 20 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Bermudian Shark Liver Oil & Weather Prediction

The use of shark oil is a method of weather prediction which has been in use for at least a few hundred years. And I am glad to say Bermuda shark liver oil is sourced from sharks which are eaten.

Shark is traditionally cooked as a hash at Easter on the Island. But because it has a strong smell, it is either liked or not liked.

Bermuda has strict rules to regulate fishing around the Island - and since the Island is isolated, sitting on a dormant volcanic shelf in the Sargasso Sea situated in the Atlantic Ocean, and has a land area totalling 22 square miles, it does not have the capacity to over fish the shark. There is a shallow coral shelf around Bermuda, longer at its Northern end and shorter on the Southern side, which is actually the top of the volcano, and on the sides of this, there is an immediate drop off into the wider Atlantic Ocean, where some of the worlds' deepest waters can be found. Bermuda has a temperate climate, and although the weather is relatively mild, this also means that it has all of the seasons.

Sharks' oil has traditionally been used in Bermuda, to predict the weather - though the relatively small amount of shark oil is usually kept within a bottle, the size of a small drinks bottle outside of the back door of many of the old houses. It is usually suspended or hung by a rafter of the roof or fixed in some elevated position where it can be easily seen.

The shark oil is a by-product of the shark, and so it seems to behave as it does within the shark. And as the weather changes - there is a very distinct change in the shark oil within the bottle. Generally, if the shark oil is clear, then the weather will be clear. Before there were accurate satellite images of the weather, when there were hurricane predictions, the old people on the Island, who could read the shark oil, would argue that according to the shark oil’s clarity, cloudiness or what have you, there would be no hurricane coming, although there would be bad weather. On at least a few occasions they have been right. The problem with hurricanes hitting Bermuda, is that the land mass is so small, a small change in direction to the right of left, could easily mean that a hurricane that was heading directly for the Island would miss it.

Most people view the sea as a luxury or exotic, but in Bermuda there is water almost everywhere you look, and with this comes the reality of the sea. And to be that exposed, it is no wonder that anything which could predict the weather was seized upon and viewed in high regard.

It's understandable that most people have never heard of this. The Bermudian population totals about 50-60 thousand, and unless you are a more affluent traveller, means likely you would have never travelled to Bermuda - which is a British Overseas Territory and a functions largely as a tax haven.