2023-10-18 14:32:48
It all started last December. Curious to learn new information regarding two great white sharks swimming off the Georgia coast, scientists fitted them with tracking devices. However, as The Washington Post echoed on Tuesday August 15, experts then noticed that these animals had a “unusual behavior”.
Indeed, this duo of predators at the top of the ocean food chain took similar routes along the Atlantic coast, before reaching the southern coast of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, details the American daily . And this, on the exact same day, within the last month. This synchronized migration might be described as revolutionary, say the researchers.
After scientists placed tracking devices on two great white sharks off the Georgia coast in December, they noticed the sharks traveled regarding 4,000 miles along similar paths up the Atlantic Coast. Scientists think their migration might be groundbreaking. https://t.co/iqlfapfHTq
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) August 16, 2023
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Jekyll and Simon, solitary and ferocious sharks
In the columns of the newspaper, Robert Hueter, chief scientist at OCEARCH, a Utah nonprofit that studies marine life, spoke out regarding it. The specialist explained that great white sharks were, most of the time, solitary and ferocious predators.
No surprise, therefore, that the recent observation so intrigues this 71-year-old expert, who has been interested in these animals since the 1970s. Robert Hueter says he has never seen, in the past, the slightest white shark borrow a route similar to that of its congeners for the same amount of time.
Named Jekyll and Simon by scientists, these two male sharks, observed near Canada, traveled a distance of approximately 4,000 miles, or more than 6,400 km.
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Blood samples analyzed
Speaking to the Washington Post, Robert Hueter said he was awaiting results from blood samples taken. The goal: to determine whether or not these two sharks are related in any way. In this way, the scientist hopes to learn information regarding why Jekyll and Simon undertook this journey together.
The OCEARCH scientist deduced from this recent information that white sharks were “plus complexes” than he and his peers previously thought. He clarified that such data included “a sort of family and social component to migration”.
Scientists’ monitoring of white sharks is full of interest. This includes determining where these animals live, feed, reproduce or even migrate. The objective: to identify areas where this vulnerable species requires our protection.
White sharks, for a number of years now, have been increasing in number off the American east coast. During the summer months, these predators will move up this coast towards New England each year. It is between August and October that the peak occurs. The Cape Cod peninsula is their favorite place.
Article originally published on August 17, 2023.
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