 The International Union for Conservation of Nature has listed the bignose shark as Data Deficient overall , due to inadequate population and fishery monitoring . The species is considered to be of concern , however , given it is slow @-@ reproducing and faces widespread heavy fishing pressure . There is evidence that its numbers have recently declined in the Maldives . Furthermore , most bignose shark bycatch occurs in international waters , where a single stock may be affected by multiple fisheries . It is listed as a " highly migratory species " under the 1995 UN Agreement on the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks , but thus far this has not led to significant conservation measures . Regionally , the IUCN has assessed the bignose shark as Near Threatened in the northwestern Atlantic . Though specific data are lacking , it is suspected to have declined there because it is commonly misidentified as the sandbar shark , thus the known decline in sandbar shark numbers resulting from US longline fishing may represent a decline in bignose shark numbers , as well . This species has been assessed as Least Concern in Australian waters , where it faces no significant threats . 
