Oceans: Some reef shark populations drop 90 percent » 43064_web

Curious gray reef sharks (Carcharhinus amlyrhynchos) at Kure Atoll in the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, Hawaii were studied as part of a study published April 25 in the journal Conservation Biology. An international team of marine scientists provide the first estimates of reef shark losses in the Pacific Ocean using underwater surveys conducted over the past decade across 46 US Pacific islands and atolls, as part of NOAA's extensive Pacific Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program. The team compared reef shark numbers at reefs spanning from heavily impacted ones to those among the world's most pristine. The results are sobering. PHOTO COURTESY P. AYOTTE.

Curious gray reef sharks (Carcharhinus amlyrhynchos) at Kure Atoll in the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, Hawaii were studied as part of a study published April 25 in the journal Conservation Biology. An international team of marine scientists provide the first estimates of reef shark losses in the Pacific Ocean using underwater surveys conducted over the past decade across 46 US Pacific islands and atolls, as part of NOAA’s extensive Pacific Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program. The team compared reef shark numbers at reefs spanning from heavily impacted ones to those among the world’s most pristine. The results are sobering. PHOTO COURTESY P. AYOTTE.

Using an innovative survey method, called "towed-diver surveys," involve paired SCUBA divers recording shark sightings while towed behind a small boat. This approach was designed specifically for the census of large, highly mobile reef fishes including sharks. PHOTO COURTESY MARC NADON.
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