Stingray boots are made of stingray leather (popularly called shagreen), which has been proved to be 25 times tougher than average-quality
leathers. Stingrays sport diverse designs and color patterns on their skins, thus stingray hides come in countless peculiar designs. Until
recently, stingray hides were traditionally obtained as by-products of stingrays killed for food, and were used to make utility products unrelated to fashion, such as the grips of Japanese and Chinese swords, as well as plain winter clothing. Today, stingray leather is one of the most coveted items in the fashion world.
The availability of stingray boots --though always in short supply-- is dictated not only by trends, but by the quantity of Stingray hides manufacturers can obtain per time. This obtainable quantity is in turn subjected to the discretion of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (cites.org). The charter lists species that are on the brink of extinction under Appendix I, stating these species are off limits at all times, except in "exceptional circumstances". The clauses in Appendix II closely follows that of Appendix I, stating the provisions for trading products made from species whose gene pool is fast depleting (stingray included).
Nonetheless, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) claims most of the species listed under Appendix II, including stingrays, are actually much more closer to verge of extinction, and deserve a place to Appendix I. Her claim is founded on the fact that species such as stingray are accounted for by insufficient data. Also, given the close semblance between them, it is relatively difficult to distinguish the species of stingray in greater danger of extinction from the ones in relative safety.
Generally, animal activists are always inclined to take a dim view of stingray products such as stingray boots. They're appalled by the idea of fishing for and killing stingrays just for the sake of making footwear. They seek to appeal to sheer human empathy by drawing parallels between the lives of Stingrays and those of the regular animals we own as pets. To them, the counter-argument that holds the derivation of leather from stingrays is sustainable given the fact that they're farmed in fish tanks and not ripped away from their natural habitats, is far fetched as it does not preclude the fact that these animals are capable of feeling pain.
However, there is hardly any leather product which does not originate from a dead animal's body. The production of hide, leather and fur invariably involves taking an animal's life. Our society at large is very conscious of the fact that animals can serve us both in life and in death. Be that as it may, some attempt to estrange themselves from the act of killing an animal by claiming that leather is a by-product, not the prime motive of killing act. They hold others who buy and sell meat as the main culprits. To them, the leather comes from the animal part that is of no use to the meat consumers, and it only makes economic sense to convert the waste into products of greater utility. But the truth remains that they're aware that the leather they're putting on was once a natural possession of a living, breathing being.
Killing Stingrays to obtain leather goes beyond just killing another animal to get by-products. Data about their population, inadequate as it has proved to be, indicates that five Stingray species are tethering on the brink of extinction. Although Stingrays are found in appreciable numbers in the coastal tropical and subtropical water bodies, their population is diminishing at an alarming rate. In Indonesia alone, an estimated two million stingrays are nabbed from their natural habitats each year. To boot, rays produce offspring only in the later part of the phase of maturity, limiting their chances of reproducing fast enough to prevent the alarming rate of fishing from driving them into extinction. The scientific community assert that nothing short of an intervention on an international level is needed to arrest this spiraling situation.
The government of Panama recently placed a ban on stingray fishing and imports in response to this dire development. In the US, the stringent provisions for the import of nonnative fish covers the trade of stingrays, touching on the legality of stingray boots in effect. Some states, including California, Texas, Hawaii and Nevada, have expressly prohibited the trade of stingrays and their by products --stingray boots included. In other states such as Florida and Colorado, trade deals involving the species are restricted, implying a permit is required. It is therefore imperative for you to check the local regulations governing the trade of stingrays if you're considering buying and using stingray boots in any location. However, the internet is the best go to source for anything related to stingray boots.
leathers. Stingrays sport diverse designs and color patterns on their skins, thus stingray hides come in countless peculiar designs. Until
recently, stingray hides were traditionally obtained as by-products of stingrays killed for food, and were used to make utility products unrelated to fashion, such as the grips of Japanese and Chinese swords, as well as plain winter clothing. Today, stingray leather is one of the most coveted items in the fashion world.
The availability of stingray boots --though always in short supply-- is dictated not only by trends, but by the quantity of Stingray hides manufacturers can obtain per time. This obtainable quantity is in turn subjected to the discretion of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (cites.org). The charter lists species that are on the brink of extinction under Appendix I, stating these species are off limits at all times, except in "exceptional circumstances". The clauses in Appendix II closely follows that of Appendix I, stating the provisions for trading products made from species whose gene pool is fast depleting (stingray included).
Nonetheless, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) claims most of the species listed under Appendix II, including stingrays, are actually much more closer to verge of extinction, and deserve a place to Appendix I. Her claim is founded on the fact that species such as stingray are accounted for by insufficient data. Also, given the close semblance between them, it is relatively difficult to distinguish the species of stingray in greater danger of extinction from the ones in relative safety.
Generally, animal activists are always inclined to take a dim view of stingray products such as stingray boots. They're appalled by the idea of fishing for and killing stingrays just for the sake of making footwear. They seek to appeal to sheer human empathy by drawing parallels between the lives of Stingrays and those of the regular animals we own as pets. To them, the counter-argument that holds the derivation of leather from stingrays is sustainable given the fact that they're farmed in fish tanks and not ripped away from their natural habitats, is far fetched as it does not preclude the fact that these animals are capable of feeling pain.
However, there is hardly any leather product which does not originate from a dead animal's body. The production of hide, leather and fur invariably involves taking an animal's life. Our society at large is very conscious of the fact that animals can serve us both in life and in death. Be that as it may, some attempt to estrange themselves from the act of killing an animal by claiming that leather is a by-product, not the prime motive of killing act. They hold others who buy and sell meat as the main culprits. To them, the leather comes from the animal part that is of no use to the meat consumers, and it only makes economic sense to convert the waste into products of greater utility. But the truth remains that they're aware that the leather they're putting on was once a natural possession of a living, breathing being.
Killing Stingrays to obtain leather goes beyond just killing another animal to get by-products. Data about their population, inadequate as it has proved to be, indicates that five Stingray species are tethering on the brink of extinction. Although Stingrays are found in appreciable numbers in the coastal tropical and subtropical water bodies, their population is diminishing at an alarming rate. In Indonesia alone, an estimated two million stingrays are nabbed from their natural habitats each year. To boot, rays produce offspring only in the later part of the phase of maturity, limiting their chances of reproducing fast enough to prevent the alarming rate of fishing from driving them into extinction. The scientific community assert that nothing short of an intervention on an international level is needed to arrest this spiraling situation.
The government of Panama recently placed a ban on stingray fishing and imports in response to this dire development. In the US, the stringent provisions for the import of nonnative fish covers the trade of stingrays, touching on the legality of stingray boots in effect. Some states, including California, Texas, Hawaii and Nevada, have expressly prohibited the trade of stingrays and their by products --stingray boots included. In other states such as Florida and Colorado, trade deals involving the species are restricted, implying a permit is required. It is therefore imperative for you to check the local regulations governing the trade of stingrays if you're considering buying and using stingray boots in any location. However, the internet is the best go to source for anything related to stingray boots.