Conservationists Call for Mako Shark Fishing Ban
Conservation groups are calling for national and international protections for shortfin mako sharks based on a new scientific assessment that finds the North Atlantic population has been depleted and is continuing to be seriously overfished. The shortfin mako – the world’s fastest shark — is sought for meat, fins, andContinue Reading
How do Scalloped hammerheads do it?
COCOS ISLANDS (Costa Rica)- The endangered scalloped hammerhead shark mates in parts of the ocean where there is a high current. The sharks possibly ‘do it’ there in favor of respiration while they’re at it. This is one of the conclusions that researchers of the Charles Darwin Research Center ofContinue Reading
New glow-in-the-dark shark species discovered
Like finding a needle in a haystack. This summer a team of scientists discovered a new species of shark measuring less than a foot long and weighing under 2 pounds full-grown. This miniature, “glow-in-the-dark” shark is a member of the Lanternshark family (Squaliformes: Etmopteridae), which was serendipitously found 1,000 feetContinue Reading
Port Jackson sharks really are long-distance travellers
JERVIS BAY (Australia)- Port Jackson sharks, those small and friendly looking sharks that often just hang out on the bottom or easily cruise along the reefs. Who would have expected that these guys can travel thousands of kilometers just to mate? Shark researcher Johann Mourier writes about the research in Jervis Bay, NewContinue Reading
Where do whale sharks spend the Australian summer?
BRISBANE (AUSTRALIA)- Swimming with whale sharks winter and autumn is one of the tourist attractions of the Ningaloo reef in Western Australia. But where do the world’s largest fish spend their summers? In a world-first, researchers from The University of Queensland (UQ) and the non-profit ECOCEAN have tracked and recorded a fullContinue Reading
Mako sharks killed at far higher rate than earlier estimated
KINGSTON (USA) Over 25 procent of all the tagged mako sharks in a University of Rhode Island shark research have been caught and killed by commercial fishermen. The conclusion of the research: Mako sharks killed at far higher rate than earlier estimates. Brad Wetherbee and his research team have been capturingContinue Reading
Gibraltar offers more protection for sharks and rays
GIBRALTAR (UK)- Since this summer, the British territory Gibraltar on the Spanish Mediterranean coast is one of the first countries in the World to offer near complete protection to all species of Sharks, Rays and Skates found within their Territorial Waters. Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Climate Change, Dr. John Cortes,Continue Reading