"A petition by environmentalists notes that young sharks are frequently caught in gill nets. There are about 340 mature great whites in the northeast Pacific, researchers say."

"Environmental groups have petitioned the federal government to list the declining population of great white sharks off the coast of California as an endangered species.

The northeastern Pacific Ocean population of great whites is genetically distinct and in danger of extinction, according to the petition. Researchers have estimated that there are about 340 individuals in the group that are mature or nearly so.

'There could be fewer than 100 breeding females left,' said Geoff Shester, the California program director of Oceana, an international group focused on protecting the world's oceans. 'Numbers in this range are lower than most species currently listed as endangered.'"

Howard Blume reports for the Los Angeles Times August 13, 2012. [2]