It was recently revealed via genetic analyses that the already critically endangered common skate (Dipturus batis) in Europe is in fact two different species: the flapper and blue skate (D. intermedia and D. flossada). Consequently catches of the smaller, more resilient blue skate have in fact been masking the more rapid decline of the flapper skate, dramatically reducing the perceived population size. Dr Iglesias, who led the study, stated:
‘The threat of extinction for European Dipturus together with mislabelling in fishery statistics highlight the need for a huge reassessment of population for the different Dipturus species in European waters. Without revision and recognition of its distinct status the world’s largest skate, D. intermedia, could soon be rendered extinct.’ (more…)
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Last week the horizon for Atlantic bluefin tuna grew somewhat darker. Despite dwindling stocks and concerns of extinction, The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) decided only to reduce quotas by approximately one third instead of suspending the fishery altogether. The aim of limiting tuna catches is to help populations recover and ensure their sustainable exploitation in the future, however, some feel the move by ICCAT to be insufficient and simply a gesture that places interim commercial concerns over long-term interests of both tuna and fishermen. (more…)
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Robert Sams in his shark bed while hearing a shark lullaby
We are hard at work shooting our latest Riddle Solvers episode – The Shark Riddle – taking us on a quest to find a tooth from the greatest living fish, much bigger than the rest. As a backdrop for this story, we traveled to the beautiful and rugged Oregon coast and filmed in places with wicked names, like The Devil’s Punchbowl and Heceta Head, which I think translates to “even worse than The Devil’s Punchbowl.” As a general rule to filming along any coastline, the locations with the most terrifying names tend to be the most visually stunning.
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On Thursday we were visited by 25 trainees from Metrorail who will be involved with promoting tourism and who needed to learn about the various tourist attractions within easy access of the train route.
They were brought to the centre by Keith Edwards. He visited last week to discuss possibilities of bringing groups of tourists to the centre as part of the programme leading up to and involving the 2010 soccer world cup as well as bringing groups of children regularly to the centre as part of the Edutrain programme. This was an opportunity to develop our relationship with Metrorail further and to reach more people with our education programme. Lesley gave a presentation and after this they were shown the award winning video ‘Sharks in Deep Trouble.’
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Great white sharks are capable of travelling large distances over relatively short periods of time, but a recent publication has found that the white sharks of the North Pacific have over time formed a genetically distinct population despite their ability to undertake transoceanic migrations. Essentially there is no interbreeding between white sharks from the North Pacific and those from other regions such as Australia and South Africa.
“Individuals persistently return to the same network of coastal hotspots following distant oceanic migrations and comprise a population genetically distinct from previously identified phylogenetic clades.” state the authors of the article published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B. They used a combination of acoustic and satellite tags, as well as tissue samples for DNA analyses, to demonstrate this strong homing behaviour that has presumably generated this genetic isolation from other populations, frequenting areas such as Hawai’i, the coast of California and a mid ocean spot termed ‘white shark café’. (more…)
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