Lemon Shark in black and white

Sharks

Hooked shark - by Ila France Porcher
Hooked shark

For all the Lost Sharks

It was found that with traditional fish stocks 90% overfished, sharks (along with tuna) have become the most lucrative prey for fisheries due to the value of their fins. So, with fishing scarcely profitable any more, fishing fleets around the world have joined in the hunt for them. The meat is pushed onto consumers using other names, so it is largely the shark fin trade that drives the so-called market for shark meat.

As a result, those species of sharks and rays accessible to fishing fleets are approaching extinction.

Sea otters bounce back but fall prey to great whites
Sea otters bounce back but fall prey to great whites

White sharks complicate population recovery for sea otters

Complex interactions and conflicts between protected populations may challenge the recovery of whole ecosystems. Several factors indicate that white sharks may be currently limiting the recovery of California sea otters.

Protected white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) and pinnipeds have an established predator–prey relationship along the California coast.

White sharks are considered threatened by the IUCN Red List, and though they are protected at state, federal, and global scales, their current status in the northeastern Pacific is debated.

Reconstruction of a megalodon's jaws
Reconstruction of a megalodon's jaws

Great white sharks are cousins, not descendants of Megalodon

Text by David McGuire

Imagine witnessing a white spot moving quickly up from below. From a blur of white and gray, it turns into an open mouth, two black eyes, and large wing-like fins. In three seconds, the image transforms from a vague spot to a great white grin. Five rows (with two protruding rows) of around 300 triangular serrated teeth line a jaw of cartilage around one meter (three feet) wide in a mature great white shark sized around 5 to 6 meters (16.5 to 20 feet).

The great hammerhead (Sphyrna mokarran) is the largest species of hammerhead shark
The great hammerhead (Sphyrna mokarran) is the largest species of hammerhead shark

Petition to Protect Great Hammerhead Sharks

The great hammerhead shark is categorized as “critically endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. That’s the designation just before “extinct in the wild.” The species is highly threatened with extinction.

To that end, the Center for Biological Diversity has submitted a petition urging the National Marine Fisheries Service to protect the great hammerhead shark under the Endangered Species Act.

Dive Palau with Explorer Ventures, a new addition to the Fleet!

Set sail in the oasis of Palau, now with Explorer Ventures Fleet! This May, the state-of-the-art Black Pearl Explorer joined the world-renowned liveaboard company, in partnership with Pearl Fleet.

Black Pearl Explorer offers three incredible itineraries, including Palau Classic visiting all the famous dive sites. Plus, two Spawning Special itineraries for divers to see the rare spawning aggregations of bumphead parrot fish and red snappers.