Strongly directional and differential swimming behavior of an adult female white shark, Carcharodon carcharias (Chondrichthyes: Lamnidae) from Guadalupe Island, Mexico

Bonfil, Ramón; O'Brien, Shannon

doi:10.3856/vol43-issue1-fulltext-24

Cited by 10 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…Knowledge about C. carcharias around Guadalupe Island is derived from a limited number of studies related to migration (Domeier & Nasby‐Lucas, ), ecology (Becerril‐García, ; Bonfil & O'Brien, ; Hoyos‐Padilla, Klimley, Galván‐Magaña, & Antoniou, ; Jaime‐Rivera, Caraveo‐Patiño, Hoyos‐Padilla, & Galván‐Magaña, ), and local movements (Hoyos‐Padilla et al, ; Skomal, Hoyos‐Padilla, Kukulya, & Stokey, ). There is no ethological research describing the surface behaviour of white sharks related to cage‐diving boats in Mexico or in the whole eastern Pacific, despite its importance for the Mexican authorities (Becerril‐García, ; Torres‐Aguilar et al, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The surface behaviour of white sharks during ecotourism: A baseline for monitoring this threatened species around Guadalupe Island, Mexico

Becerril‐García

Hoyos-Padilla

Micarelli³

et al. 2019

Aquatic Conservation

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1. Cage diving is the most important activity for the sustainable use of white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias). However, information related to their behaviour during ecotourism is scarce.2. This study provides useful information for monitoring C. carcharias during cagediving activities around Guadalupe Island, Mexico. Surface behaviour of 106 white sharks was recorded for 87 days on-board six cage-diving boats in 2012, 2013, and 2014.3. Of the observed sharks, 63% were immature specimens (n = 67) and 37% were considered mature (n = 39). Seventy-one per cent were males (n = 75) and 29% were females (n = 31). 4.Interactions were classified into one of the 11 behaviours: parading, close inspection, horizontal attack, vertical attack, bait catching, feeding, not feeding, buoy catching, encounter, escape, and staying. 5. Parading, close inspections, and horizontal attacks were performed more often by mature males, whereas immature females performed more vertical attacks, with no differences between mature and immature males. 6. A total of 1,542 ethograms were registered. Each ethogram consisted on average of 6.3 ± 5.6 behaviours with a significant transitional pattern from horizontal attacks to parading and close inspections, and from vertical and horizontal attacks to bait being caught. 7. A pattern related to feeding in a simple stimulus response reflex was observed. The shark's length seems to play an important role in the efficiency of the attacks, presumably resulting from the experience of mature individuals. Intentional feeding should be avoided to prevent negative effects related to ecotourism.8. This study constitutes a baseline for future research on white shark behaviour. It can be applied in other regions regardless of environmental conditions, quantity and size of the boats, and types of bait. Using this standard method could improve the monitoring, management, and conservation of this vulnerable species.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The surface behaviour of white sharks during ecotourism: A baseline for monitoring this threatened species around Guadalupe Island, Mexico

Becerril‐García

Hoyos-Padilla

Micarelli³

et al. 2019

Aquatic Conservation

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“…During periods of directed horizontal travel a white shark (2.9 m TL large, juvenile female, NS2018-06) was shown to shift to a pattern of increased near-surface swimming punctuated by occasional deep dives. A number of white shark tracking studies have reported a similar pattern of increased surface swimming (Bonfil et al, 2005;Weng et al, 2007a;Domeier and Nasby-Lucas, 2008) and increased swimming speed (Bonfil and O'Brien, 2015;Watanabe et al, 2019) during traveling or oceanic phases. However, white sharks moving directly at the surface incur wave drag, which is energetically costly (Watanabe et al, 2019).…”

Section: Seasonality and Migrationmentioning

confidence: 88%