A number of sharks and rays in Australia are creeping towards extinction, a new report has found.

Key points: 11 species of threatened sharks or rays have failed to recover and some have declined further, according to a new report

11 species of threatened sharks or rays have failed to recover and some have declined further, according to a new report Commercial fishing, habitat degradation and climate change pose the greatest threat to sharks in Australia

Commercial fishing, habitat degradation and climate change pose the greatest threat to sharks in Australia The scalloped hammerhead has been upgraded to critically endangered

None of the sharks and rays listed as endangered under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act have shown any sign of recovery, and some have continued to decline, according to a new report.

The report from the Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) and Humane Society International looked at how well Australia's national environment laws were functioning to protect and recover threatened species, said Tooni Mahto from AMCS.

"None of the listed species have shown any sign of recovery," Ms Mahto said.

"There is strong evidence that many species have actually declined."

Grey nurse sharks, school sharks, sawfish and white pointers were some of the species listed on the EPBC Act that were reviewed in the report.

Sawfish, freshwater sharks at most risk

The sawfish's plight is one example of shark and ray populations disappearing despite awareness of their vulnerability, said Ms Mahto.

Gillnetting and trophy-taking hit sawfish numbers hard. ( Supplied: Sharks and Rays Australia, Ben Fisher )

"The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has actually up-listed the sawfish since they were listed under our national environment laws," she said.

"Which means that they've moved into a higher threat category, and are more threatened with extinction."

The report — written by Nick Rayns, a former executive manager of fisheries at the Australian Fisheries Management Authority — found that commercial fishing is causing a continued decline of sawfish populations.

Habitat degradation and climate change were identified as the other major threats to shark and ray populations in Australia.

Australia's endangered skates and rays often don't get as much attention as their shark cousins. ( Supplied: Cynthia Awruch )

The management of sharks and rays usually happens after declines have been reported, the University of Newcastle's Vincent Raoult said.

"The management is usually insufficient to stop [the declines], partially because of the fisheries that are at odds with this recovery," Dr Raoult, a shark scientist, said.

The new report makes multiple recommendations including:

introducing risk assessments prior to deciding whether a recovery plan is necessary,

introducing risk assessments prior to deciding whether a recovery plan is necessary, protecting critical shark and ray habitat,

protecting critical shark and ray habitat, developing a national shark strategy,

developing a national shark strategy, changing the laws so that recovery actions are mandated.

Dr Raoult, who was not involved in the report, said he supports its recommendations.

"We're still seeing declines of many species of shark and ray around Australia many of which are threatened, endangered or even critically endangered," he said.

"Australia is home to so many unique sharks and rays, we need to do more to protect them."

Hammerhead critically endangered globally

Last week the IUCN upgraded the status of the scalloped hammerhead to 'critically endangered' globally.

According to the IUCN the scalloped hammerhead is now closer to extinction than the Giant Panda. ( Supplied: Christopher Dascher )

The scalloped hammerhead was listed in Australia in 2018 as conservation dependent, which means that it can still be fished.

The new IUCN assessment signals that the situation for the scalloped hammerhead has become worse internationally, and Ms Mahto believes that Australia is out of step with international conservation efforts.

"Our position is that all fishing for scalloped hammerhead sharks should cease, as is the recommendation by the IUCN."

Dr Raoult agrees the national listing should reflect the updated IUCN assessment.

"Scalloped hammerheads migrate across international waters, and they're very vulnerable to gillnets and shark nets along the east coast," he said.

The speartooth shark from the Gulf of Carpentaria is listed as critically endangered. ( Supplied: Brit Finucci )

Australia is home to many sharks that aren't found anywhere else in the world.

One of the sharks most at risk of extinction is the Northern Territory's speartooth shark, and hardly anyone even knows it exists, said Ms Mahto.

"I think what is happening in our oceans is the silent extinction crisis because it's so much harder to document and it's much harder for people to actually witness," she said.

"But it's clear that we are facing challenges within our marine environment, particularly for some of our threatened shark species."

A spokesperson for the Federal Environment Minister Sussan Ley did not answer specific questions about the report, but said in a statement that the "Australian Government had made significant investments in implementing key actions identified in the recovery plans for listed sharks and rays".

They said the Federal Government would continue to work with the states and territories to improve the outcomes for threatened sharks.

They did not answer the question of whether the national listing of the scalloped hammerhead shark would be upgraded following the updated IUCN assessment.