Japanese angelshark is eaten and the rough skin is made into a type of leather called shagreen for use in wood finishing. Angel sharks in general are highly threatened by commercial trawl fisheries due to their susceptibility to capture and low rate of reproduction, and angel shark species elsewhere are known to have declined markedly under fishing pressure. Trawling activity in the Yellow Sea and other parts of the northwestern Pacific is intense and, coupled with pollution, has had a serious impact on the local ecosystem. The Japanese angelshark population is suspected to have declined by up to 50% or more under
Russia leather been remarkably hard-wearing and examples have lasted in use into the 19th century, without recovering. When finally worn out, this was often by the surface of the leather having worn right through into a hole, still without any structural cracking of the leather, as a less flexible hide would fail. Russia leather was (and still is) commonly used for production of footwear. In Russia itself, it was usually used to make high boots (sapogi). In this craft, Russia leather was usually divided into two sorts: the more expensive "yalovka" (produced from calf skin) and the cheaper "yuft" (from all other