Unprecedented** display, a 5-foot (1..)5 meters) long small white sharks swim near California.
A section filmed off the coast of Santa Barbara captures something new in science: a newborn great white shark alive. The discovery of this shark could help researchers finally understand how white sharks – one of the ocean's apex predators – give birth to their offspring.
In July 2023, a drone photographed the 5-foot-long baby shark; It is covered with a thin white film, which is the main clue to the shark's recent birth. Researchers say it may have a problem, but it's more likely that it's still covered in an embryonic layer. The drone shot and an article describing the results of the study were published today in Fish Environmental Biology.
Carlos Guana, a wildlife filmmaker, said: "Capturing the true process of shark birth is the holy grail of shark science. What I'm photographing is just a clue that brings us closer to it. He filmed this ** and is also a co-author of the study. He added: "The pieces of the puzzle provided by this section do have the potential to change the direction we should be focusing on, and may even have a greater impact on which areas should be protected." ”
The great white shark is a terrifying but fragile species threatened by human fishing and poaching. They have hundreds of teeth, and the largest individuals can grow up to 20 feet (6 meters) long. Although great white sharks have captured our imaginations to a large extent, we know very little about how they are born.
The recently discovered shark was much smaller than an adult shark – as small as a shark that had just come out of its womb. The juvenile shark had two signs that it was a newborn, the first being a white film covering its body. Researchers speculate that this pale membrane is made from some intrauterine material left on the animal. Study co-author Phillip Sternes said pregnant female white sharks produce a fluid called uterine milk, which is consumed by shark embryos. White sharks consume this fluid as well as other eggs in their mother's womb.
But the shark's age can be confirmed by its shape — more specifically, the shape of its "round, underdeveloped dorsal fin," which Carlos Guana added looks like the dorsal fin of an unborn shark found inside a dead pregnant shark.
* The explanation of the disease does not take into account the fins, especially the dorsal fin," he added. "I don't believe that having a disease can change the shape of the dorsal fin. ”
The discovery of such young great white sharks so close to the shore could change scientists' expectations of their spawning. Despite the fact that these sharks appear so large in the public consciousness, we actually know very little about their habits or even about their lifespan.
If you like it, please pay attention to "Know the New"!