Shipment of illegal shark fins seized at California airport, wildlife agency says

A shipment of 40 shark fins, which are illegal in California, was seized at an airport from a private jet arriving from Hawaii, California officials reported.

The incident took place in February, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife said in a Tuesday news release. Authorities did not name the airport where the fins were seized.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service received a tip that the fins were being transported to California but could not intercept the flight before it left Hawaii, the agency said.

Acting on the information, state wildlife officers stopped the jet as it landed. They found the 40 dried and frozen shark fins aboard, the department said.

“Possessing shark fins detached from the shark is illegal in California and across the United States and much of the world,” wildlife officers said.

Shark fins are considered a delicacy in some parts of the world.

Shark finning is the practice of removing a shark’s fins and dumping the rest of the body at sea, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.

The agency called harvesting sharks for their fins alone a “cruel and destructive act.” Sharks are often released back to the ocean after having their fins cut off, but, unable to swim properly, they slowly drown.

“Beyond the inherent cruelty, shark finning devastates vital ocean ecosystems,” officers said. “Sharks are apex predators that help maintain the balance of marine life, and their loss disrupts global ecosystems that we all depend on.”

A state law passed in 2011 bans possessing, selling, offering for sale, trading or distributing shark fins.

An investigation into the February incident continues, the agency said.

If you see shark fin on the menu at restaurants, such as shark fin soup, or for sale in businesses, you can report it to a tip line at 1-888-334-2258.

This story was originally published April 29, 2026 at 11:13 AM with the headline "Shipment of illegal shark fins seized at California airport, wildlife agency says."