Shark Conservation with Saving the Blue

From day one, it’s been our mission to support ocean conservation and spread awareness about the issues impacting our oceans. We offer ways for ocean enthusiasts to respectfully explore and enjoy the underwater world and collaborate with initiatives that are making a positive impact on our oceans and planet. We are thrilled to announce our newest collaboration with Saving the Blue. Their shark tagging program is making huge waves (no pun intended) in shark conservation efforts, with hopes to use collected research data to preserve and protect various species of sharks. From hosting educational expeditions to outreach awareness programs, Saving the Blue is an inspirational leader for ocean advocates like us!

About Saving the Blue

Saving the Blue is a non-profit organization that aims to recover and restore populations of threatened marine species while connecting people to their mission through education and outreach. Through their efforts, they promote green and sustainable living while making the public aware of the true impact of our actions on the ocean environment. Various forms of scientific research, like shark tagging, help advance the understanding of marine organisms, focusing on threatened species of sharks, sawfish, and rays. The data collected through their efforts can then be provided to stakeholders and used to promote conversation initiatives to protect these sensitive species.

Saving the Blue also offers educational opportunities to the global community, including instructional and experiential programs in marine science and conservation. Their initiatives are primarily targeted toward minority groups, veterans, youth groups, and service members, although anyone with a passion for the ocean is encouraged to join! Their passion for the planet extends beyond just the ocean to the environment as a whole, advocating for green living, waste reduction, and utilization of renewable resources. Basically, they are a powerhouse organization committed to protecting our oceans and our planet – hence, Saving the Blue! And that is something we can definitely get on board with!

The shark tagging program

Saving the Blue is tagging many species of sharks and other marine life with acoustic tags to capture vital behavioral data. These species include silky, dusky, hammerhead, lemon, nurse, and tiger sharks. Each shark requires a unique capture technique based on the breed size and whether they live in shallow or deep water. These techniques are designed to capture and tag them as quickly and seamlessly as possible so the sharks can be sent on their way.

The transponders are about the size of a grain of rice and can function for over ten years. The tracking tags will transmit data back to receivers placed around Andros, The Bahamas. And these listening stations will capture the data each time the animals pass by.

The data is downloaded from each receiver at least once per year, and can then be compared against data from the other receivers. This allows them to determine the role of different biological factors, habits, migration and nursing patterns. The acoustic tracking tags will capture in-depth information like diet, mating characteristics, blood and muscle analysis, gene flow, and size measurements. Saving the Blue is able to use this data in the preservation of the current population of sharks and to help support the breed’s continued growth. The specific focus of the shark tagging and monitoring program we will be supporting is Saving the Blue’s silky shark program.

What are silky sharks?

Silky sharks are one of the primary focus breeds in the shark tagging program. They are considered vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), so it’s essential to take action now to determine how we can support the species’ survival. Silky sharks are smooth and silky looking, which is how they got the name silky shark! They can reach lengths of up to 3.5 meters, although the average measured by the Saving the Blue receivers has been between 1 to 2.5 meters. They are typically found in warm, tropical waters, such as the waters of The Bahamas, and prefer hanging out at depths of at least 500 meters or more, which is why they are so hard to monitor. Deepwater trenches, like The Tongue of the Ocean (TOTO), could provide a perfect habitat for silky sharks and many other species. But again, in areas of incredibly deep water, it can be hard to manage, monitor, or conduct research. That is why tagging is so important.

Silky sharks can sometimes be spotted near the surface, providing an opportunity to tag them to monitor their movements further once they descend back into the depths of the ocean. Silky sharks are incredibly social, often traveling in schools and following the migration of tuna. Unfortunately, that means they are frequently caught as bycatch by intensive commercial fishing vessels and purse seine fisheries. They ranked second in global shark bycatch, with an estimated 2 million unintentionally caught each year with a whopping 90% mortality rate. At this rate, the population is depleting faster than it can recover. If we want the silky shark population to survive, some significant changes must be made.

What can we do about the problem of silky shark bycatch?

Silky shark bycatch, and all bycatch in general, is a regular occurrence in the intensive fishing industry. Approximately 40% of all marine life caught globally is bycatch, although the exact amount is unknown due to lack of management and underreporting. Although there is a push for enhanced global regulation, mitigation methods are more expensive and time-consuming than the current processes. Since most fishery management plans have no incentives to minimize bycatch, why would they want the extra hassle?

What we CAN do in this situation is develop a greater understanding of the behavior and biology of silky sharks. Being able to predict their movement in the northwest Atlantic and their breeding habits will help us set up protected areas in the ocean that are dedicated to conservation. Other preventative devices, such as SharkGuard (an electric pulsed device used in longline fishing to deter sharks), can be implemented in areas where we know there is high silky shark traffic. Ultimately, the more information collected using the shark receivers, the better we can implement solutions.

What the shark receivers will help us to understand about silky sharks

So, what types of data will the shark tagging program and receivers provide us with? Although Saving the Blue has many research initiatives with sawfish, hammerheads, and other sharks around the world, we will be focusing on the silky shark program in Andros, The Bahamas. When silky sharks do venture to the shallower waters, Andros is one of the hot spots, making it an ideal location to place receivers and tag sharks.

Some of the important things this program will enable Saving the Blue to understand is just how vital Andros, The Bahamas is to silky sharks and whether or not it’s a nursery area for them. They will also be able to track how quickly silky sharks grow and what mechanisms underpin their social behavior. It’s essential to understand if specific silky sharks show site fidelity or residency to the waters around Andros and how those sharks are connected to other bodies of water like the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, and other parts of the northwest Atlantic. All of this information will prove invaluable to the program.

Our collaboration with Saving the Blue

We are so excited to be collaborating with such an important conservation project and have recently funded a new shark receiver in The Bahamas, which is now part of the chain of receivers capturing data from tagged marine life. These receivers will allow Saving the Blue to monitor populations of sharks to determine how different factors, including humans, impact their behavior, lifecycle, and quality of life! This research can then be used for conservation efforts, ensuring that the shark populations continue to thrive and have the best chance for survival.

We will also continue to support Saving the Blue by matching all customer contributions to the cause, with every $350 raised going towards tagging another shark. We also get the opportunity to name our tagged sharks and receive their tracking information so we can keep tabs on their whereabouts. How cool is that?! Additionally, we are supplying their entire research team with their own ProShot Dive cases to further their ability to take helpful and informative underwater footage during their research trips.

How you can support Saving the Blue

Interested in joining our efforts to support Saving the Blue? There are many ways that you can get involved. As mentioned above, you can donate directly to the initiative through us, and we will match your contribution. If you feel like a trip to The Bahamas, you can join an expedition as a research assistant (no experience required) and get up close and personal with shark conservation efforts as part of the Saving the Blue team! If you’d rather support sharks from a distance, you can also symbolically adopt a shark or ray, make a donation in tribute to someone, or fund educational workshops, research expeditions, and community outreach programs. Find out all the amazing Saving the Blue programs you can support here. And if you have a business of your own, consider becoming a collaborator like us!

Beyond monetary donations, there are many other ways that you can support Saving the Blue’s mission. All of our individual efforts make a difference in the preservation and protection of our oceans. Host a beach cleanup in your local area, reduce your plastic consumption by switching to plastic-free alternatives, choose reef-safe sunscreen and choose ethically-sourced seafood, or cut out seafood completely. Be the change, and inspire those around you to make ocean-friendly choices as well!