QUEENS LAND, AUSTRALIA (PRpoint Release) — Whale shark researchers have marked International Whale Shark Day by solving a long-standing mystery about where the world’s largest fish go during the Australian spring and summer. In a world-first, researchers from The University of Queensland and the non-profit ECOCEAN have tracked and recorded a full return migration of whale sharks […]
Hundreds of leopard sharks wash up in San Francisco
Hundreds of dead leopard sharks, as well as a few other species, have washed ashore between Redwood City and San Francisco in the past month. Biologists suspect that the sharks are being exposed to high levels of toxins when they enter shallow water and lagoons to birth their pups. The loss marks the worst die-off in […]
Arctic expedition set to study mysterious Greenland shark
(Press Release) An international team of scientists, including a physiologist from The University of Manchester, will head to the largest island in the world later this month to investigate the Greenland shark – believed to be the longest-lived vertebrate animal. Dr Holly Shiels, who is also a trustee of the Physiological Society, will be the […]
Hammerhead shark migration gives new hope for conservation
A target of both the recreational fishing and shark-fin trade, the global population of the instantly recognizable Great Hammerhead shark is estimated to have declined by ~80% over the last 25 years. The Great Hammerhead has been listed on the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) as endangered since 2007. It has also […]
Shark population survey, Global FinPrint, reaches record goal
Researchers attempting the world’s largest survey of shark populations just reached their goal of 216 reefs — a year and a half ahead of schedule. But they have no plans of stopping. Launched during Shark Week in 2015, Global FinPrint is a three-year project led by FIU marine biologist Demian Chapman to search for the […]
New species of hammerhead shark discovered in Belize
After examining the DNA from a sample of what was thought to be a common bonnethead shark that was caught off the coast of Belize, researchers believe they have discovered a whole new species. Boneheads are the smallest members of the hammerhead family, reaching a maximum length of three feet, and are identified by the […]
Sharks may hold key to combatting Alzheimer’s Disease
Specialized shark proteins could help researchers unlock new treatments for Alzheimer’s Disease and other degenerative brain disorders. Danish pharmaceutical company, Lundbeck, announced that are moving on to the next stage of testing for treatments that utilize shark antibodies to help deliver drugs into patients. The new treatment involves bonding developmental drugs to the shark proteins so that […]
Captive shark in Australia gives virgin birth
A female zebra shark in a Townsville, Australia aquarium gave birth last year to a litter of three pups despite not having been exposed to a male of the species in over four years. Testing, revealed this week in the journal, Scientific Reports, show that the contain only the mother’s DNA and that the baby […]
Fun fact: Sharks don’t urinate like other fish
The urinary system of a shark includes a bladder and urinary tract but unlike bony species of fish, sharks do not expel that urine through the traditional urinary system. Sharks need to maintain a steady level of soluble salts in their body at all times to maintain buoyancy and avoid dehydration from seawater running over their […]
Florida Aquarium starved shark to death, according to complaint
A complaint filed with the 13th Judicial Circuit State Attorney and the Hillsborough County Pet Resource Center alleged that an adult nurse shark that died at Tampa’s Florida Aquarium in November was due to human neglect. The complaint was brought forth by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Foundation on Thursday after a former biologist who worked for […]