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Researchers at University of Plymouth have found that climate-change predicted changes in oceans could force the whitefin Swellshark to find new habitats or face extinction. The catshark species is located in the deeper waters of Australia’s east and south coasts.
IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) has classified the whitefin Swellshark Critically Endangered for many years. This is largely due to poor fishing practices. According to the study, oceanic changes such as higher temperatures or changes in chemical composition could threaten this species further by the turn of the century.
Researchers found that by using computer models for forecasting ocean conditions, and accounting for sharks’ favorite habitats they could lose up to 70 percent of their habitats in the next 75-years. A refuge within the Great Australian Bight may offer favorable habitats and abundant food.
Sharks that grow up to 1.1 m in length may have to travel 70 – 1100 km to get to this new potential home. A climate-changed environment may also cause other marine species to seek shelter in this area.
Researchers see some hope in Australia’s proactive conservation efforts, including marine protected zones (MPAs). This could protect the whitefin and other species that are vulnerable.
This study highlights that it is urgent to increase conservation efforts in order to safeguard these sharks against the effects of future climate change.
Kerry Brown is a Marine Biology and Oceanography Graduate and the lead author for this study. The whitefin Swellshark is a beautiful species that most people haven’t seen.
“However, even though it is listed as critically threatened, we don’t know much about its behavior because their habitats are in deep ocean. They have lived on Earth for many years, and will therefore have had to adjust to the changes that have occurred in their surroundings. “The threat of their survival in the future is very real, if we don’t take immediate steps to safeguard them.”
Robert Puschendorf is an Associate Professor in Conservation Biology. The whitefin Swellshark has a chance of survival because we have seen other species migrate to different parts of the ocean.
The marine protected zones along the Australian coastline are an important factor. However, whether or not they are the best place to protect this species depends on the location. It does, however, show that the authorities of the region are willing and able to act.”
The challenges that this species – as well as others – face today are very different from what they faced in the past, when we consider how few areas of our planet have not been damaged by humans in some manner. Our study suggests that we may be in a situation where we could do something.”
Journal Reference
- Kerry Brown, Robert Puschendorf. The future climate-driven loss of habitat and the range shifts for Critically Endangered Whitefin Swellsharks (Cephaloscyllium Albipinnum). PeerJ , DOI: 10.7717/peerj.18787
