Research

Sharks are among the most threatened vertebrates on the planet, with many populations at risk from overfishing, climate change, and habitat destruction. Thus, research aimed at understanding and mitigating the responses of sharks and their ecosystem effects to these threats are conservation priorities. The Shark Research Foundation address these needs through its core scientific activities and by collaborating.

Key research areas we aim to explore include, but are not limited to:

  • Assessing impacts of urbanization, fishing, and ocean warming on shark behavior, physiology, and health
  • Monitoring shark relative abundance and biodiversity through time and space
  • Understanding and monitoring environmental and biological drivers of shark space use and movement
  • Understanding impacts of shark declines and recoveries on ecosystem structure and function
  • Identification of shark critical habitats and biodiversity hotspots
  • Assessing the efficacy of time-area closures and marine reserves for the conservation of sharks

Featured Projects:

Ecology of Great White Sharks in Atlantic Canada.

The Shark Research Foundation is excited to be investigating the ecology of white sharks off Nova Scotia, Canada, a region quickly emerging as a new global hotspot for the species. This research is conducted in collaboration with Atlantic Shark Expeditions Ltd., which provides the expedition platform—including vessels, expertise, equipment, and field data—to support the Foundation’s scientific work.

BioTrack Video Image

BioTrack - Conserving Marine Species Biodiversity Hotspots.

The Shark Research Foundation is leading a NOAA-funded project called “BioTrack” which aims to integrate, store, process, visualize and share data on marine biodiversity hotspots based on animal tracking data that supports conservation and natural resource management. A project of the US National Marine Biodiversity Observation Network, results of this project will directly support resource management, conservation, and restoration needs in the US and beyond. 

Highlighted Studies:

Sharks respond to climate change with a population-level shift in critical habitat

Residency, site affinity and coastal movements of the southern African endemic spotted gully shark Triakis megalopterus

Sharks at night, exposed to city light: Melatonin concentrations in two shark species differ in response to artificial light at night

Evidence of cascading ecosystem effects following the loss of white sharks from False Bay, South Africa

Linking physiological state to movement dynamics in an open ocean predator, the blue shark (Prionace glauca)

White sharks under threats in South Africa: a call for precautionary management action

First insights into the fine-scale vertical movements of a Carolina hammerhead, Sphyrna gilberti, & a hybrid between Carolina & scalloped hammerhead

A Prosperous Economy Requires Ocean Biodiversity Information, Technology, and Innovation

Vulnerability of marine megafauna to global at-sea anthropogenic threats

Global tracking of marine megafauna space use reveals how to achieve conservation targets

Metal(loid) contamination in tiger sharks (Galeocerdo cuvier) from a remote oceanic island in the Equatorial Atlantic Ocean and potential impacts on physiological parameters

First insights into the vertical habitat use of young porbeagles in the north-western Atlantic with implications for bycatch reduction strategies

Life stage and seasonal habitat use of the porbeagle Lamna nasus in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean

Transboundary movements of porbeagle sharks support need for continued cooperative research and management approaches.

Global mercury concentrations in biota: Their use as a basis for a global biomonitoring framework

Shark conservation requires mortality-limiting regulations amid global change

Animal migration in the Anthropocene: threats and mitigation options

Uncertainty remains for white sharks in South Africa, as population stability and redistribution cannot be concluded by Bowlby et al. (2023)...

Network analysis of the endemic spotted gully shark Triakis megalopterus reveals spatial vulnerability to exploitation in the Western Cape, South Africa

Ocean warming alters the distributional range, migratory timing, and spatial protections of an apex predator, the tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier)

Urban Sharks: Residency Patterns of Marine Top Predators in Relation to a Coastal Metropolis

A Novel Intrauterine Satellite Transmitter to Identify Parturition in Large Sharks

Loss of an Apex Predator in the Wild Induces Physiological and Behavioural Changes in Prey