As the fishing pressure in inshore waters is usually heavy, tawny nurse sharks are threatened by overfishing throughout their range. With limited home range, late sexual maturity and low fecundity, they are susceptible to local depletion, which has already been reported in India and Thailand. People consume their meat, fins, liver for oil and vitamins, skin for leather, and the remains for fishmeal. They are also regarded as a big prize by some recreational fishers. Destructive fishing tools such as explosives and poisons also destroy the reefs where these sharks live.