HOME ALPINE ATHLETICS LIFE AT SHIP CONTACT BREADCRUMB Home Shark hotspots under worldwide threat from overfishing SHARK HOTSPOTS UNDER WORLDWIDE THREAT FROM OVERFISHING August 07, 2019 By admin In a groundbreaking new study published in the journal Nature, an international team of over 150 scientists from 26 countries combined movement data from nearly 2,000 sharks tracked with satellite tags. Using this tracking information, researchers identified areas of the ocean that were important for multiple species, shark “hot spots”, that were located in ocean frontal zones, boundaries in the sea between different water masses that are highly productive and food-rich. Researchers then calculated how much shark hotspots overlapped with global longline fishing vessels – the type of fishing gear that catches most open-ocean sharks. The study found that 24% of the space used by sharks in an average month falls under the footprint of longline fishing. For commercially exploited sharks such as blue and shortfin makos sharks in the North Atlantic, the overlap was much higher, with on average 76% and 62% of their space use, respectively, overlapping with longlines each month. Even internationally protected species, such as great whites, had over 50% overlap with longline fleets. “Our results show major high seas fishing activities are currently centered on ecologically important shark hotspots worldwide” says Professor David Sims, who led the study as part of the Global Shark Movement Project based at the Marine Biological Association Laboratory in Plymouth, UK. Equally alarming was that shark hotspots showing high overlap with longline fishing were often also subjected to high fishing effort, a potential ‘double whammy’ for sharks that will result in higher catch rates and potentially accelerate declines in abundance. “Some shark hotspots were exposed to higher than average fishing effort for as much as half the year” said Nuno Queiroz, a lead researcher in the study from the University of Porto in Portugal. Tags Shark LOG IN or REGISTER to post comments SEARCH Search USER ACCOUNT MENU LOG IN THE CHINCOTEAGUE BAY FIELD STATION Shippensburg University is proud to offer opportunities for students to enhance their learning through field studies in a range of disciplines. A unique cooperative agreement between Shippensburg University and other Colleges and Universities, allows Ship to offer educational, READ MORE SOCIAL MEDIA FACEBOOK TWITTER BEHANCE YOUTUBE INSTAGRAM VIMEO ABOUT US Marine Science is the study of the ocean, its ecosystems and its life forms as well as the study of coastal environments, oceanic currents and the sea floor. Marine Science also known as Oceanology. Related Journals of Marine Science. MAIN NAVIGATION HOME ALPINE ATHLETICS LIFE AT SHIP CONTACT