By Jason Bittel On a sunny Saturday in mid-September, 26-year-old Arthur Medici was boogie-boarding in the waves off Wellfleet, Massachusetts, when a great white shark bit his leg. Despite the efforts of a friend who pulled him ashore and the paramedics who rushed him to the hospital, Medici died from his injuries. It’s about as […]
As the Discovery Channel marks its 30th anniversary of Shark Week, it’s important to remember that many populations of the iconic ocean predator are under threat from human activity, especially from commercial fishing. On Monday, a new interactive map was launched to show the movements of 45 sharks tagged between 2012 and 2018. Their tracks, […]
Up to 100 hammerhead shark pups were found dead Tuesday morning near Keehi Lagoon in Honolulu. Experts suggested that gillnet fishing could be the culprit. Authorities at the state’s Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement have opened an investigation after the baby sharks were discovered by the La Mariana Sailing Club, according to local media. […]
Starbucks is being pressured to cut ties with popular Hong Kong restaurant chain Maxim’s Caterers Limited over its offering of dishes with shark fin. Maxim’s said it phased out the controversial product in 2017 but undercover investigators with the wildlife conservation charity WildAid found that the eatery still offers shark fin on a secret “premium” […]
A team of scientists has tracked a whale shark (Rhincodon typus) across more than 20,000 kilometers (over 12,000 miles) of ocean, the longest migration ever recorded for the species. In 2011, the researchers attached a transmitting tag to a shark they named “Anne” in the Pacific Ocean near Panama’s Coiba Island. Over the next 841 […]
By Zachary Toliver Sometimes humans forget that animals have feelings, too, and cause them to suffer. Just consider some Florida beachgoers who were filmed taking photos of and selfies with an injured hammerhead shark, who an expert says most likely died after the incident. On a beach near West Palm Beach, Florida, a group of […]
Some of our oceans‘ largest creatures are being threatened by the tiniest bits of plastic that litter our seas, a new analysis published in the journal Trends in Ecology & Evolution found. Filter-feeding marine animals such as manta rays and whale sharks swallow hundreds to thousands of cubic meters of water a day to capture […]
Belize, home of the largest barrier reef in the western hemisphere, has permanently suspended oil operations in its ocean waters. The legislation marks the first time that a developing country has taken such a major step to protect its oceans—and all the life within—from oil exploration and extraction. The new suspension of oil activity marks […]
On his trip to Asia, President Trump ate shark fin soup in Vietnam. While this meal is considered a status symbol, delicacy and a sign of wealth in Asian culture (it can sell for over $100 a serving in restaurants), the continued consumption of shark fin soup has a devastating effect on shark populations around […]