A white shark’s great migration!
Yeah, I’m pretty great…
Great white sharks are commonly found along the coast of California and in the Monterey Bay. For a long time, it was assumed that our local adult white sharks were coastal cruisers— simply searching for dolphins, seals and sea lions in nearshore waters. And then researchers put satellite tags on their backs:
Packing on the frequent-swimmer miles — Shark migration paths from the Farallon Islands near San Francisco, and from Guadalupe Island in Mexico (that’s where the shark gifs in this post were filmed).
Working with many research partners, Aquarium ecologists discovered in the early 2000′s that—starting in the fall and winter—northeastern Pacific great whites make extensive journeys across the open ocean to Hawai’i—and on to a mysterious location in the middle of nowhere Pacific Ocean, affectionately called “The White Shark Café”. What’s going on out there? Well…
We don’t know!
Hmmm, finteresting…
Presumably, white sharks would only make such incredible migrations to feed or breed—or both. But if they’re feeding in the Café, we’re not entirely sure what they’re feeding on. And if they’re there to mate, that seems like an awfully long way to go to find a date, instead of the nearshore feeding islands where males and females are already mixing. Soooo, we’re not quite sure what’s happening out there.
Research to the rescue!
Tag, you’re it! — Aquarium researcher Salvador Jorgensen with a tool of the tagging trade.
To determine the sharks’ behavior in the café, The Aquarium is teaming up with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute to develop a smart tag that uses accelerometers and gyroscopes to record details of swimming motion and speed.
Males and females have different swimming patterns in the café, according to older-style tags. This data will help us program the smart tag to trigger a video camera only while sharks are in the café—and presumably making moves at potential prey or eligible singles.
Hey there—come here often?
As we discover more and more about these toothy transients through our conservation and science programs, we keep finding more examples of just how great white sharks are!
And if you want to learn more about white sharks on your trip to the Aquarium, stop on by our “Project White Shark” auditorium program!
Not just an OK white shark. A great white shark.
