All articles tagged with #sharks
Paleontologists in Egypt's Western Desert uncovered fossilized shark teeth from at least seven extinct species in the Abu-Tartur Plateau's Duwi Formation, indicating a once-diverse shallow sea in the Late Cretaceous and identifying species new to the region, with teeth signaling varied feeding strategies across ecological niches.
Paleontologists analyzing phosphatic beds at Abu-Tartur, Egypt, uncovered 28 shark teeth belonging to five extinct species—including two new records for Egypt—revealing a nutrient-rich, open-shelf Cretaceous sea that once lapped northern Africa; the assemblage suggests distinct ecological niches and a productive marine ecosystem driven by upwelling, though the teeth represent a time-averaged snapshot rather than a single moment.
About 29 dead juvenile dogfish sharks were found along Sea Isle City’s beach on the Jersey Shore, between 29th and 39th streets — a rare mass finding. A shark ecologist says the event is unusual and likely resulted from a single incident affecting a school of sharks, with discarding after catching being a possible explanation; a widespread toxin or pollution is considered unlikely since other marine life hasn’t been reported affected. Beachgoers are advised to alert authorities if they encounter dead wildlife, and researchers are monitoring conditions to better understand such events in the future.
Researchers attached a fin-mounted camera to a nurse shark in Florida to study movement; the footage unexpectedly showed a great white cruising by for several minutes, offering a rare shark's-eye view of interspecies interaction.
Ma'a Nonu staged a solo Kapa o Pango in response to the All Blacks' Ka Mate haka before his Sharks faced a 54-0 defeat in Durban. The former New Zealand star came off the bench for about 20 minutes, saying it was an honor to show respect to the NZ team he loves. All Blacks coach Dave Rennie confirmed they anticipated the gesture. Nonu, a 104-cap World Cup winner, had joined the Sharks to help develop young players, and the tour schedule continues with matches against South Africa's teams.
The NYPD has launched a drone-based surveillance program to assist lifeguards in monitoring rising shark sightings along New York City beaches, with Rockaway Beach seeing a cluster of sightings; officials have issued red-flag alerts and closures to protect swimmers while experts note broader global shark-human interaction trends and the influence of warmer waters.
A forecasted strong El Niño is warming Pacific waters off California, drawing more juvenile white sharks, hammerhead sharks, rays and other tropical species northward this summer and fall, reshaping coastal ecosystems and potentially increasing stingray injuries.
Macklin Celebrini signed a five-year, $94 million extension with the San Jose Sharks ($18.8 million AAV), making him the NHL’s highest-average annual value player and keeping him in San Jose through the 2031-32 season. The 20-year-old posted 45 goals and 115 points last season and helped elevate the Sharks toward a playoff push, while the league braces for a rising salary cap to $113.5 million by 2027-28.
Breton, a 1,400-pound great white tracked by OCEARCH, has been pinging off eastern Florida and heading south into warmer waters, a surprising pattern that researchers say may involve deep, cooler dives and pursuit of pelagic prey.
Shark Week host Forrest Galante explains that crunching beers in the ocean can attract sharks and that most bites are mistaken-identity events; he urges beachgoers to educate themselves about shark species, avoid swimming at dawn/dusk and near river mouths or bait, not swim alone, and leave beverages on dry land to reduce risk ahead of his Discovery special 'Alien Sharks: Untamed America.'
Washington man Connor Seifert, 27, is charged in Pierce County with nine counts of unlawful recreational fishing in the second degree and one count of making a false or misleading statement to a public servant after allegedly illegally catching and wrestling protected bluntnose sixgill and broadnose sevengill sharks in Puget Sound. Officers say removing sharks from the water harms pups in pregnant mothers and that Puget Sound acts as a nursery for these species. He faces misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor penalties, with fines up to $1,000 per misdemeanor and up to $5,000 per gross misdemeanor, plus potential jail time if convicted.
Scientists confirm parthenogenesis in sharks, showing females can produce offspring without mates. In a zoo tank, a bonnethead gave birth to a pup with DNA identical to its mother, a hallmark of unfertilised egg development, challenging assumptions about cartilaginous fish reproduction. Additional cases in bamboo sharks and sawfish suggest this may be an emergency strategy when mates are scarce, though such offspring often have reduced genetic diversity and viability. The phenomenon is mainly documented in captivity, with unknown implications for wild populations and breeding programs.
An OCEARCH-tagged male great white shark known as ‘Contender’—about 1,700 pounds and 14 feet—was detected near North Carolina’s Outer Banks as it migrates up the East Coast, illustrating ongoing tracking of the species’ movements along the western North Atlantic.
BBC science feature reveals nine surprising shark traits—from learning and basic math to a taste for jazz, belly buttons in some species, intrauterine cannibalism, social bonds, and skin denticles that reduce drag—along with advanced electroreception and magnetoreception that aid hunting and navigation, underscoring sharks as an ancient and diverse lineage.
A man was injured in a suspected shark attack off Jones Beach on Long Island, with lifeguards clearing the water for about an hour before swimming restrictions were lifted; the incident follows several shark sightings around the New York City area that caused temporary beach closures.