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continuedBy Richard
Alleyne, Science Correspondent at the AAAS in San Diego
Published: 3:23AM
Dr Ronald O'Dor, senior scientist at the Census of Marine life, said
that a
new study had shown that numbers had dropped below the 3,500 tigers
that
exist in the wild.
Scientists had been under the impression that Great Whites, although
rare,
were not endangered, because they were spotted at different areas all
over
the ocean.
But a new study by Stanford University, which involved tagging and
tracking
the fish, discovered that it was the same sharks being seen over and
over
again.
Dr O’Dor said: "I recently heard a report from the team that's been
tagging Great White sharks.
“When I heard there maybe fewer than tigers I thought “oh my god”
That
is
truly scary.
The estimated total population of great white sharks in the world
oceans
is
actually less than the number of tigers.
"We hear an awful lot about how endangered tigers are but apparently
great white sharks are pretty close to the same level.
“Some people say I don't care, they eat people, but I think we have
to
give
them a little space to live in.”
His comments, made at the American Association for the Advancement of
Science
conference in San Diego, were based on research by Professor Barbara
Block
who tracked more than 150 Great Whites using satellite and acoustic
tracking
devices as they moved along the Californian coast and Hawaii.
"Based on their understanding on populations, they have done some
estimates of how many sharks there are,” he said.
"People see a Great White shark on the South California coast - and
another hundreds of miles away.
“We are now understanding that they are more mobile than we thought -
and
actually it's the same shark appearing in different places.”
He said Great Whites, whose numbers have dropped by 90 per cent in 20
years
are not only in danger from illegal fishing but also from being hit by
boats
and tangled up in fishing nets.
"Until recently, people thought sharks were bad and there was no urge
to
save great whites,” he said.
“Now people are beginning to understand that they are rare and that
they
are a
wonderful species.”
He said that the tags had been used in Australia to act as early
warning
systems for surfers and swimmers.
He said: "The Australians have now got a system where they put tags
on
Great White sharks and they have receivers on the beaches so when a
great
white comes into the bay the receiver automatically makes a cell phone
call
and tells the guy in charge to close the beach. So we can co-exist
with
marine life."
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