levels. In 1995, Canada established an Exclusive Economic Zone and became the primary fisher of porbeagles in the region. Between 1994 and 1998, Canadian fishing vessels landed 1,000–2,000 tons per year, which depleted the population to 11–17% of pre-exploitation levels by 2000. Strict regulations and greatly reduced fishing quotas introduced in 2000 have since begun to reverse the stock decline, though recovery of the stock is projected to take decades due to the low productivity of the species. Some evidence shows that incidental artificial selection caused by heavy fishing has led to a compensatory growth response, i.e. faster growth and earlier maturation. In the Southern Hemisphere, commercial fishing for the porbeagle is mostly undocumented. Substantial numbers are caught incidentally by pelagic longline fisheries targeting more valuable species such as southern bluefin tuna (Thunnus maccoyii), swordfish (Xiphias gladius), and Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides), including vessels operated by Japan, Uruguay, Argentina, South Africa, and New Zealand. Porbeagle catches by the Uruguayan tuna pelagic longline fishery peaked in 1984 with 150 tons landed. Records of catch per unit effort for this fishery have shown a 90% decline in porbeagle landings from 1988 to 1998, though whether this reflects a real population decline or changing fishing habits is uncertain. New Zealand has reported annual catches of 150–300 tons, mostly of immature individuals, from 1998 to 2003. Conservation The rapid collapse of porbeagle stocks on both sides of the North Atlantic is often cited as archetypal of the "boom and bust" pattern of most shark fisheries. Factors including a small litter size, long maturation time, and the capture of multiple age classes all contribute to this shark's susceptibility to overfishing. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed the porbeagle globally as vulnerable, endangered in the western North Atlantic (including the Baltic), and critically endangered in the eastern North Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea. The porbeagle is listed on Annex 1 (Highly Migratory Species) of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and on Annex 1 of the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS; also known as the Bonn Convention) Migratory Shark Memorandum of Understanding. This species benefits from bans on shark finning instituted by several nations and supranational entities, including Canada, the United States, Brazil, Australia, the European Union, and the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas. Although the Animals Committee of the UN Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species