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Aussie scientists tag first adult specimen of rare Speartooth Shark

Xinhua, November 11, 2015 Adjust font size:

A rare and elusive shark species was tagged for the first time in adult form, when Australian scientists managed to come across two Speartooth Sharks off Australia's north coast.

Listed as a critically endangered species, Speartooth Sharks had previously only been found in adolescent form, but scientists from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) managed to temporarily capture two adult specimens and tag them, before releasing them back into the wild.

Found in the remote waters of Cape York - at the very tip of Australia - the Speartooth Shark had evaded scientific research since 2006, and the CSIRO's Dr Richard Pillans said finding not just one, but two adult sharks at the same time was quite the surprise.

One of the sharks was a female measuring 2.2 meters, while the other shark - a male - was 2.3 meters long, and Pillans said it could mean the team was conducting the search in a mating area.

"Both individuals were tagged with satellite tags that will detach after approximately two months and provide information on where the sharks have moved to in this time," Pillans said in a statement on Wednesday.

"The tags also collect water temperature and depth which can be used to reconstruct the movement pathways and provide detailed information on the habitat preferences of this species."

Pillans said the tags will provide the CSIRO with "critical" data which could be used to better understand the habitats, threats and diets of the Speartooth Shark.

He said just 500 remain in the wild, and any information from the tags would be pivotal in creating a conservation plan for the shark.

"It is hoped that the information obtained from these tags will provide the first data on where adult Speartooth Shark live, with this data critical to obtaining a better understanding of threats to this endangered species," he said.

"We currently have no idea where the adults occur, all we know is that they are found in marine environments somewhere off the northern Australian coast." endit