reef sharks tagged posts

Nearly two-thirds of coral reef shark and ray species worldwide are threatened with extinction, reports a new study in Nature Communications. This build on a study in 2020 that found that reef sharks across the globe are in decline, missing from 19% of the world’s coral reefs. At the time, this was the greatest decline of reef sharks ever recorded, but these recent results suggest that the extinction risk of coral reef sharks and rays, as a percentage of threatened species, is almost double that of all 1,199 known shark and ray species.

“The findings highlight the need for immediate conservation action for these species through local protections, fisheries management and enforcement, and Marine Protected Areas,” stress the authors of the new study.

Coral reef ecosystems ar...

Reef sharks do not stick to the same area throughout their lifetime, but use different habitats when they mature. This is shown by research by Wageningen University & Research (WUR) in the Caribbean Netherlands on 2 species of reef sharks, that has been published in the journal Marine Ecology Progress Series. These findings have potential implications for effectively managing and protecting these endangered species.

Scientists have used cameras at 376 locations on reefs in the waters of Saba and St. Eustatius. It turns out that mainly juvenile nurse sharks and Caribbean reef sharks swim around there: young sharks that are not yet sexually mature. ‘We have hardly observed any adult sharks,’ says researcher Twan Stoffers...

Sharks are rarely seen at almost one in five of the world’s coral reefs, a major study has found. The crash in shark numbers, caused largely by over-fishing, could have dire consequences for corals struggling to survive in a changing climate, researchers have said. Sharks are top predators, playing a key role in marine ecosystems.

They did best in places where shark fishing was controlled, or where marine sanctuaries had been created.

Dr Mike Heithaus of Florida International University, US, said: “At a time when corals are struggling to survive in a changing climate, losing reef sharks could have dire long-term consequences for entire reef systems.”

The research, published in the journal Nature, and part of the Global FinPrint study, reveals widespread loss of reef sharks across much of...