Hundreds of newly unloaded, wet, and bloody shark fins dry in the afternoon sun in a quiet street near Kennedy Town docks, Hong Kong, Dec. 7 2010. It is difficult and dangerous to gather images like this in countries such as South Africa and Costa Rica, where shark fin drying compounds are highly-fortified with breeze-block walls, barbed wire and security cameras. This is because global shark fin traders, and the Chinese organized crime syndicate partners who operate them, are extremely wary of theft and negative publicity. However in Hong Kong, where crime rates are low and attitudes more towards shark finning more accommodating, shark fin drying is brazenly done in public. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, 74 shark species are listed as at high risk of extinction, with a further 69 species considered to be at high risk in the near future.